By Consultants Review Team
The first increase in mobile pricing in 2.5 years was announced by Jio, the leading telecom provider in India, and it paved the way for further increases by Vodafone Idea and other providers. Additionally, the business has curtailed clients' access to unlimited free 5G services.
Experts in the field predict that the spike will occur just after the spectrum auction. Industry insiders predict that Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel would shortly raise their mobile service prices as well.
Reliance Jio Infocomm Chairman Akash M. Ambani stated in the statement, "The introduction of new plans is a step in the direction of furthering industry innovation and driving sustainable growth through investments in 5G and AI technology."
Nearly all plans now have higher cell service rates according to the firm. The lowest recharge now costs Rs 19, which is almost 27% more than the Rs 15 1 GB data add-on pack.
Instead of Rs 399, the 75 GB postpaid data package would now cost Rs 449. Additionally, Jio increased the cost of the well-liked Rs 666 unlimited plan with an 84-day validity by around 20% to Rs 799.
The cost of the annual recharge plans will go up from Rs 2,999 to Rs 3,599 and from Rs 1,559 to Rs 1,899 by 20–21 percent.
There will be a 19–21% increase in all medium-range mobile service plans.
"All plans with 2GB or more per day and above will be able to access unlimited 5G data. The updated plans are available through all current channels and touchpoints and will go into effect on July 3, 2024," the announcement stated.
Currently, users with plans costing more than Rs239 have access to limitless free 5G service; users with lower plan prices must top up their subscription with a Rs61 voucher in order to continue using 5G.
Prior to this, Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea all increased their mobile service tariffs in December 2021.
Between then and now, in early 2023, Airtel increased the price of its entry-level mobile services package by around 56%, from Rs 99 to Rs 155. With more than 47 crore mobile users, Jio holds a roughly 41% market share.
In addition to raising the cost of cell service, Jio released two new apps: Jio Safe and JioTranslate, which are available to users for free for a year. JioSafe is a quantum-secure communication software that costs Rs 199 per month and may be used for file transfers, texting, and other functions.
AI-powered An software called JioTranslate allows users to translate text, photos, voice messages, and voice calls between multiple languages.