It has been three years since RIL returned to telecom with a big bang. Today, while outlining big plans for Reliance Jio, Mukesh Ambani yet again refrained from announcing a launch date for the 4G broadband service
It is no secret that Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director (CMD) of Reliance Industries (RIL), has big ambitions in telecom sector. This was reflected in his speech at the annual general meeting (AGM) of RIL on Thursday. As expected, he informed shareholders about his big plans for his Reliance Jio (RJio), the 4G venture. However, this time also he did not mention any launch date for the fourth generation service.
“Our vision for India is that broadband and digital services will no longer be a luxury item—a scarce commodity—to be rationed amongst the privileged few. Together with our partners, we have charted an ambitious plan for the next 12 months, and we at Reliance Jio foresee making rapid progress over this period towards launching our services across India," Ambani, the richest man in India said.
However, instead of announcing the impending launch date for RJio, he merely said, “Our impatience to reach our goal demands a sense of urgency, but not careless haste.”
Reliance Jio Infocomm is the only company to have nationwide permits for 4G broadband services. According to the RIL CMD, as of today, RJio has increased its headcount to over 3,000 professionals from 700 a year ago and expects to ramp up the number to nearly 10,000 over next year.
Over past few months, RJio has signed agreements with Anil Ambani's Reliance Communications (RCom) for using its inter-city fibre optic network and with Bharti Airtel for use the telecom services provider’s submarine cable that connects India and Singapore.
As per the agreement, RJio would use RCom’s multiple fibre pairs spread over 1.2 lakh km across the country for providing backbone to roll out its 4G services. “RCom will in turn have reciprocal access to optic fibre infrastructure to be built by RJio in the future,” RCom had said in a release. RJio agreed to pay about Rs1,200 crore to RCom as one time indefeasible right to use (IRU) fees for sharing the fibre optic network.
Similarly, RJio would use the dedicated fibre pair on i2i, the submarine cable owned by Bharti Airtel. It will connect RJio directly to the world’s major business hubs and ISPs, thereby, helping the operator to meet the bandwidth demand and provide ultra-fast data experience to its customers.
Telecom has always been a sector close to the heart of the Mukesh Ambani, who is known for his quick execution of mega projects, launched his ‘dream’ mobile services in 2003-04 with a slogan “Kar Lo Duniya Muththi Mein” (take control of the world). However, he had to give up Reliance Infocomm (which later became RCom) to Anil Ambani in 2005 when the Reliance empire was split.
Later in 2010, Mukesh Ambani-led RIL re-entered the telecom arena with a bang, announcing the acquisition of Infotel Broadband Services Pvt Ltd, which had emerged as the sole winner of pan-India broadband spectrum, for Rs4,800 crore.
According to the RIL CMD his 4G telecom services would be pillared on “affordability and providing an unparalleled range of services that do not exist today.”
“In the coming years RJio’s next generation digital infra and services platform will catalyse a transformation and will embrace almost every facet of India’s economic growth and social progress,” he said at the AGM.
Inside story of the National Stock Exchange’s amazing success, leading to hubris, regulatory capture and algo scam
Fiercely independent and pro-consumer information on personal finance.
1-year online access to the magazine articles published during the subscription period.
Access is given for all articles published during the week (starting Monday) your subscription starts. For example, if you subscribe on Wednesday, you will have access to articles uploaded from Monday of that week.
This means access to other articles (outside the subscription period) are not included.
Articles outside the subscription period can be bought separately for a small price per article.
Fiercely independent and pro-consumer information on personal finance.
30-day online access to the magazine articles published during the subscription period.
Access is given for all articles published during the week (starting Monday) your subscription starts. For example, if you subscribe on Wednesday, you will have access to articles uploaded from Monday of that week.
This means access to other articles (outside the subscription period) are not included.
Articles outside the subscription period can be bought separately for a small price per article.
Fiercely independent and pro-consumer information on personal finance.
Complete access to Moneylife archives since inception ( till the date of your subscription )
You may consider investigating why this is so. It is important because lakhs of customers will discover with a rude shock that their expensive phones won't give them 4G performance when used with Airtel and Reliance. I would say that Airtel and Reliance (if this is true with them too) should not be allowed to market their service as 4G because it will create confusion in the market.
And, BTW: Reliance Jio's license is for broadband wireless, not a phone service. The spectrum was sold for broadband wireless only. Later, the govt has permitted ISPs to offer voice as well, allowing Jio an entry into mobile telephony as long as they pay for a universal license.
Secondly, just why we only in India are going in a direction different from the rest of the world? When iPhone (and nearly all 4G phones) can work on 4G everywhere else, why should we have different standards and bands here? There is something seriously wrong about the competence in Indian companies and government decision makers.