Reliance Jio Accounts for Nearly 40 Percent of India's Broadband Connections: TRAI

Reliance Jio became the country’s largest provider of broadband connections just six months after it launched its telecom operations, according to data by telecom regulator TRAI. The figure is for the month of February, and takes into account both wired and wireless connections. 512Kbps is the minimum speed to qualify as broadband, as per TRAI. The report adds that India’s broadband user base increased to 261.31 million, up 2.98 percent from 253.75 million. Of this, Reliance Jio – which provides broadband speeds only via its 4G mobile network – is responsible for 102.84 million (39.36 percent).

Airtel, which offers both mobile and wired Internet services, is the second biggest player in the industry with 46.69 million broadband connections (17.87 percent), according to the TRAI report. Reliance Jio and Airtel are followed by Vodafone (32.06 million, 12.27 percent), Idea Cellular (24.31 million, 9.3 percent), and BSNL (20.81 million, 7.69 percent). Other wired and mobile service providers together accounted for 34.6 million or 13.24 percent.

The order largely remains the same for wireless (mobile) broadband connections, with Reliance Jio (102.84 million), Airtel (44.62 million), Vodafone (32.05 million), and Idea Cellular (24.31 million) taking the top four spots. BSNL, however, is displaced by Reliance Communications in this list with its 14.04 million mobile broadband connections.

The list of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) delivering broadband speeds via wired connections is topped by BSNL with its 9.95 million connections. It is followed by Airtel (2.07 million), ACT Fibernet (1.14 million), MTNL (1.03 million), and YOU Broadband (0.62 million).

The list of wired broadband service providers, however, may see a change soon as Reliance Jio is expected to soon launch its Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) broadband service in the coming months. As was the case with its telecom services, Reliance Jio’s home broadband service is expected to launch with ultra-low cost plans that may just upend the wired market. The company has confirmed in a regulatory filing that it has started trials for the Jio home broadband service, and that the trials will be expanded to more cities soon. However, it has not given a concrete launch date or details of the pricing yet.

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