Reliance
Jio, the youngest telecom operator in the country, is not only gaining massive popularity but also acquiring new subscribers at a rapid rate. While the company reported a user base of 16 million around the end of September 2016, the current tally is reportedly above 24 million. The company attributes this to the demand for affordable high-speed 4G services that are fulfilled efficiently by Reliance Jio.
According to an investor presentation by parent company, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Jio’s top performing telecom circles are Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh with 1.5 million and 1.2 million users respectively, as on late September.
Reliance Jio’s growth
Since the two months that Reliance Jio opened its doors to the Indian public, the network has been supporting more data traffic than any of its counterparts. Touted to be one of the largest data providers on an international level, the 4G-enabled network operates on VoLTE technology. The company has recorded data usage of approximately 16,000 TB daily on its network. This, according to Credit Suisse, is the largest amount of data that any data servicing carrier has supported on a daily basis.
The success of Jio can be credited to its attractive launch offer. The Reliance Jio welcome offer allows users to avail of free unlimited data services, voice and video calling facilities, as well as premium Jio applications.
Spectrum strength of Jio
Mukesh Ambani led Reliance Jio owns expansive spectrum across India. This is one of the main factors that boosts its connectivity and allows individuals across various regions in the country to enjoy high-speed Internet and other services. Being the world’s largest start-up, Jio also owns the most comprehensive liberalized spectrum in the country. Having launched commercially across all of its telecom circles in September 2016, the service provider has impacted the market to a large extent with its competitive pricing strategy.
Jio’s telecom circles
Following the states of Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh in terms of Jio’s subscriber base is Tamil Nadu, which has approximately 1.1 million users. Besides, the Maharashtra, Bihar, Karnataka, and Rajasthan telecom circles have recorded the Reliance Jio user base to be 1 million subscribers each. This is followed by telecom circles of Uttar Pradesh, both East and West, and Madhya Pradesh, which have reported 0.9 million users.
As on the 30th of September 2016, telecom circles in Punjab recorded 0.8 million users while Delhi and Haryana reported 0.7 million users each. These regions were followed by circles in Mumbai, Kerala, Kolkata, and Orissa, where 0.6 million users were recorded. In the north-eastern circle too, the telecom operator is gaining traction. Additionally, the state of West Bengal had 0.5 million users, Assam had 0.3 million users, Himachal Pradesh recorded 0.2 million users, the entire north-eastern telecom circle reported 0.1 million, and Jammu and Kashmir in the north reported 0.1 million subscribers.
Having launched in a price-sensitive telecom market, Reliance Jio already extends its 4G coverage to 200,000 villages and 18,000 cities in India, thereby helping it reach out to 70% of the national population. Future plans of the company include enhancing this coverage to 90% across the country.
Summary
Reliance Jio’s user base has surpassed 24 million within two months of its commercial launch in India.