Indian telecom service provider Bharti Airtel has started offering 4G LTE tariffs below the 3G rates for high consumption users.
The strategy of Airtel is to counter a possible tariff challenge from the Mukesh Ambani-promoted Reliance Jio Infocomm when it launches 4G LTE next year.
Srini Gopalan, director for Airtel’s consumer business, said that the company will shift 3G customers to 4G at the same rates if they have a 4G compatible smartphone, Times of India reported. The main problem with India is the lack of cost effective 4G smartphones.
Bharti Airtel is offering 10 GB of data for Rs 999 on 4G network against Rs 1,499 on 3G network. The price for 5GB data is Rs 850 on 3G and 4G networks. Airtel charges Rs 749 for 4GB data from 3G users and Rs 750 from 4G customers. For 1 GB, Airtel has priced Rs 249 for 3G data and Rs 250 for 4G data.
Airtel 4G is available in select 15 cities in the country. Its Delhi launch will happen once Aircel gets the approval from the Department of Telecommunications.
Bharti Airtel — promoted by Sunil Mittal — currently offers 4G network in 15 cities after first rolling it out in Kolkata in April 2012. These are Amritsar, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Ludhiana, Mohali, Nagpur, Nasik, Panchkula, Patiala, Phagwara and Pune.
At present, the Indian telecom industry is clueless about the action plan of Reliance Jio Infocomm, which received the BWA license in 2010 to launch mobile broadband services. The company says it has already tied-up with several network vendors including Samsung.
Recent telecom industry research reports say the entry of Reliance Jio will force established telecom operators to slash mobile broadband tariffs by 20 percent. The entry of Reliance Jio will impact the growth of Airtel, Vodafone, Idea Cellular, Tata Docomo, Aircel, Uninor, Reliance Communications, etc.
Reliance Jio Infocomm, the only pan-India 4G operator, will play in the data and voice markets.
Image source: Airtel
Baburajan K
editor@telecomlead.com
