Airtel

Reliance Jio has widened its Google AI bundle from a youth-focused offer to a network-wide benefit, signaling that AI services are becoming core to 5G monetization in India. Jio is extending a complimentary 18โ€‘month subscription to Googleโ€™s premium AI planโ€”marketed around access to Gemini 3โ€”to every Jio customer on an Unlimited 5G plan. The bundle centers on expanded access to Googleโ€™s latest Gemini experience, AIโ€‘assisted features in Gmail and Docs, 2 TB of cloud storage across Photos, Drive, and Gmail, video generation powered by Googleโ€™s Veo technology, NotebookLM at elevated limits, and developer tooling such as Gemini Code Assist and Gemini CLI.
S&P Global Ratings has upgraded Bharti Airtel on the back of stronger earnings quality, healthier free cash flow, and a clearer deleveraging path, signaling a maturing Indian mobile market. The action reflects rising confidence that Indiaโ€™s tariff repair is sticking after mid-2024 hikes, with average revenue per user moving up and a larger share of premium 4G/5G subscribers. Airtelโ€™s fiscal Q2 (India) showed operating momentum and cash disciplineโ€”key ingredients behind the rating move. Tariff increases and a richer subscriber mix pushed ARPU above the psychologically important INR 200 threshold, aided by postpaid gains, 4G/5G migration, and bundled content.
5G standalone networks change the service model. Operators can carve the network into slices with distinct latency, reliability, and throughput characteristics validated by 3GPP standards. That enables ultra-reliable low-latency communications for factory automation, connected vehicles, remote operations, and mission-critical services. It also enables differentiated quality for cloud gaming, broadcast-like video, and IoT control loops when combined with edge computing and time-sensitive networking. Jioโ€™s position is that treating all traffic identically under a single โ€œinternet accessโ€ umbrella can inhibit these new uses. A ruleset that preserves open internet principles for consumers yet explicitly allows specialized services with assured QoS for enterprises is what the company seeks.
Reliance Jioโ€™s six-plan lineup for November 2025 blends low entry pricing with AI, cloud, and OTT hooks, signaling how prepaid is evolving from pure connectivity to service-led bundles. Starting at Rs 189, Jio is segmenting prepaid users by usage intensity (voice-first, balanced data, and long-validity) while nudging them into its digital stack: JioTV for content, JioAICloud for storage, and on select offers, Google Gemini Pro for AI. As 5G coverage and usage expand, Jioโ€™s add-ons are designed to create reasons to stay on-network and upgrade. AI benefits in prepaid are rare globally; anchoring them to eligibility criteria and higher-tier 5G plans suggests an upsell path that can improve monetization without headline tariff hikes.
A cascade of offers from OpenAI, Google, and Perplexityโ€”amplified by Airtel and Reliance Jioโ€”signals a deliberate push to convert Indiaโ€™s scale into durable AI usage, data, and future revenue. With more than 900 million internet users, rock-bottom mobile data prices, and a young, mobile-first population, India offers the worldโ€™s deepest top-of-funnel for AI adoption. Giving away premium accessโ€”such as a year of ChatGPTโ€™s low-cost โ€œGoโ€ tier, Jioโ€™s bundling of Gemini, or Airtelโ€™s tie-up with Perplexity Proโ€”maximizes trial, habituation, and data collection across diverse languages and contexts. Even a low single-digit conversion rate translates into millions of subscribers, while non-converters still contribute valuable signals that improve models.
Singtel has sold another slice of its Bharti Airtel holding, freeing up capital to fund growth while continuing to rebalance a long-standing strategic investment. Singapore-based Singtel monetised roughly 0.8% of Airtel for about S$1.5 billion (approximately US$1.2 billion), recording an estimated net gain of S$1.1 billion. The sale is part of a multi-year capital management programme launched in 2021. Management has framed the initiative as a way to strengthen the balance sheet and redeploy capital into higher-growth digital infrastructure and digital services, while progressively equalising its Airtel ownership with Bharti Enterprises over time.
India has ceded the lowest-tariff crown to Bangladesh and Egypt, yet it still leads on value through generous allowances and low data unit costs. Indian base plans commonly include unlimited voice, whereas Bangladesh and Egypt restrict voice to roughly 100 and 70 minutes respectively at entry level. On data, incremental purchase economics are unusually attractive: an extra Rs 100 typically buys around 26 GB, or about Rs 4 per GB, keeping India among the most affordable data markets globally. Even after adjusting for purchasing power parity, India remains at the affordable end of global tariff rankings.
Indiaโ€™s mobile industry lobby is pushing for tariff corrections as network spending rises faster than service revenues. The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) says operators face a growing mismatch between capital outlays and tariff-led returns. By its estimate, the cumulative gap up to 2024 was already around Rs 10,000 crore and is widening in 2025 as data consumption accelerates. COAI argues that a handful of large traffic generators (LTGs) are responsible for most network load without directly contributing to network build costs. Expect a mix of tariff rationalization, plan redesign, and targeted capex as operators chase sustainable returns.
India Mobile Congress 2025 in New Delhi framed a clear ambition: scale domestic innovation, shape 6G, and turn telecom into a larger engine of GDP growth. Leaders underscored a whole-of-government approach, with multiple ministries backing IMC and the Department of Telecommunications and the Cellular Operators Association of India co-hosting. Indiaโ€™s telecom and digital sector is estimated to contribute roughly 12โ€“14% to GDP today. Leaders at IMC projected this could reach about 20% by the mid-2030s if India scales advanced connectivity, software-led services, and domestic manufacturing. Indiaโ€™s 6G push was tied to a potential GDP uplift exceeding a trillion dollars by 2035.
T-Mobile has set a clear handover plan that pairs continuity with a sharpened focus on digital, AI, and new growth vectors. Srini Gopalan, currently Chief Operating Officer, will become CEO of T-Mobile US, succeeding Mike Sievert. Sievert moves to a newly created Vice Chairman role, remaining on the management team and Board to advise on strategy, innovation, talent, and external relations. The structure signals operational continuity and a deliberate next phase for the Un-carrier playbook across wireless, broadband, and adjacent services. Expect Gopalan to intensify investments in AI across care, sales, and network operations.
Reliance Jio’s 2026 IPO could be Indiaโ€™s largest public listing, with a projected valuation between โ‚น10โ€“12 lakh crore. As Jio Platforms prepares to float 2.5โ€“5% equity, the move could reshape 5G pricing, digital infrastructure investments, and ARPU strategies across the telecom stack. With cloud, AI, and enterprise services gaining traction, Jioโ€™s IPO positions it as a multi-product digital powerhouse. Airtel and Vodafone Idea may face intensified competition as capital deployment and service bundling accelerate.
India’s telecom usage is now predominantly indoors, and TRAI’s new property rating framework puts digital connectivity on par with core utilities. TRAI’s chairperson flagged a decisive shift: most mobile data is consumed inside homes, offices, malls, hospitals, and transit hubs. Connectivity inside buildings is moving from convenience to necessity. TRAI’s 2024 Regulations introduce a voluntary, performance-based star rating that assesses how ready a property is to deliver high-quality broadband and mobile connectivity. The framework encourages developers to embed Digital Connectivity Infrastructure (DCI) at design stage, aligns with Digital India and Smart Cities Mission, and invites ministries and agencies to incorporate DCI into guidelines, tenders, and training.

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