Reliance Jio is joining Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea to announce that it will increase tariffs. The disruptive telecom service provider has announced that it will increase tariffs for its mobile plans. Like its rivals, Jio also says that the move is due to the need to make fresh investments. Since starting its commercial operations in September of 2016, Reliance Jio has not made any major revision to tariffs. The price hike, expected to roll out next month, will be the first major hike from the company in three years.
Reliance Jio to hike mobile plans in next few weeks
“Like other operators, we will also work with the Government and comply with the regulatory regime to strengthen the industry to benefit Indian consumers and take measures including appropriate increase in tariffs in the next few weeks in a manner that does not adversely impact data consumption or growth in digital adoption and sustains investments,” the company said in a statement.
The announcement comes after Vodafone Idea Cellular first confirmed its plans to hike tariffs for its customers from December 1, 2019. Bharti Airtel joined by announcing that it will also hike price of its prepaid and postpaid plans. Now, Reliance Jio is following suit to detail its plan to raise the price of its tariff plans. In a statement, the company added that the tariff hike will be done “in a manner that does not adversely impact data consumption or growth in digital adoption and sustains investments.”
Reliance Jio also said that it will compete with rivals in terms of quality and service. “Jio will always keep the customer at the center of everything and ensure that the customer continues to benefit the most.” The company has already made revisions to its plans by announcing that it will charge customers for calls to other network. It announced that customers will have to pay interconnect charges for calling rival networks. Post that announcement, Reliance Jio announced all-in-one plans that bundled data and free call minutes to other networks.
Watch: Top Fitness Trackers
The announcement saw backlash from customers and the price hike could see similar reaction from consumers accustomed to free services. All the three major operators have announced price hike at the same time to contend the deteriorating scenario of India’s telecom market. Vodafone CEO Nick Read said the country has become challenging and is not economically viable. Vodafone Idea and Airtel reported record loss during the quarter ending September due to AGR payment. The price hike is seen as a way to recuperate some of their losses.
