Reliance Jio has set newer standards in Indian telecom market by unveiling free voice calls, although the “free” part of the plan is still open to interpretation when it officially announced the commercial roll-out of its services in India recently. Competitors – Airtel and Vodafone – are probably now grappling with the low tariffs that the “disruptive” Reliance Jio plans will bring into the Indian telecom market.
It all started with Reliance offering the Jio 4G Preview Offer exclusively for LYF brand of smartphones. The offer was then extended to Samsung devices. Now, many 4G compatible devices have already been added to the list of eligible devices for Jio 4G Preview Offer. Reliance Jio 4G SIM Preview Offer gives you 90-day unlimited access to high-speed data, HD voice, and videos calls with unlimited SMS and access to many premium Jio apps. As reported by digit, Reliance Jio 4G Preview Offer could now be extended to one year for Reliance LYF users very soon. The likely extension of the offer to 1-year is exclusive for LYF brand of smartphones.
But good stuff always comes with a catch. According to the report, under the new 1-year offer, LYF users would not get free SMS and voice calls, but will get only 4G data free for one whole year. So it all boils down to this – normal users will get 4G data + voice + SMS for three months while LYF users are likely to see only the free 4G data component extended for 1 year. But it remains unknown whether LYF users will get to enjoy unlimited 4G data. Most likely, there will be a cap for monthly 4G data usage. The announcement by Reliance regarding the extension of the offer and its terms and conditions for LYF users is expected to be made soon.
The telecom industry players are undertaking massive revisions in tariffs, with Airtel now announcing “Mega Saver Pack”. The Mega Saver Pack offers 1GB 4G data at an activation price of INR 1498 and is valid for 28 days. Thereafter, you have to pay INR 51 every month. Other competitors are also being forced to slash prices of data packs.
It remains to be seen how Tata Docomo, Vodafone, Aircel, Idea, and others respond to the “disruption” in Indian telecom industry being led by none other than Reliance.