Jio to launch wireless broadband service on Sept 19: Mukesh Ambani

Reliance Jio will launch a fixed wireless broadband service on Ganesh Chaturthi (September 19), said Mukesh Ambani, chairperson of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), on Monday.

Jio AirFiber will facilitate up to approximately 150,000 connections daily, a tenfold increase over existing rates, said Ambani at RIL’s 46th annual general meeting (AGM). Designed to tackle the last-mile connectivity issues associated with fibre optic cables, Jio AirFiber will serve as a personal WiFi hotspot for homes and it will be powered by the telecom firm’s high-speed 5G internet.

“Our vast optical-fibre network puts us near more than 200 million properties. However, delivering physical last-mile connectivity remains a challenging task across many parts of India. This has left countless potential subscribers without home broadband due to the logistical difficulties and delays in laying optical fibre to their homes. This is where Jio AirFiber comes into play,” said Ambani.

Bharti Airtel, Jio’s competitor, launched a similar service called Xstream AirFiber last month. Airtel’s device, featuring built-in Wi-Fi 6 technology, aims to bridge this gap by offering broad indoor coverage and the capability to connect up to 64 devices simultaneously.

Airtel’s service is currently accessible to 5G users in Delhi and Mumbai, delivering speeds of up to 100 Mbps at a rate of Rs 799 per plan. Airtel’s data showed that only 34 million homes in India are connected via optical fibre, underscoring a significant demand for improved fibre access.

Telecom firms are focused on offering fixed wireless broadband service due to its lucrative potential. “Through fixed-mobile convergence, we can nurture greater commitment and loyalty from Indian households, particularly the high-value ones where home broadband consumption is rising the most,” said Ambani.

Industry experts anticipate a strong debut for Jio which has an optical fibre network spread over 1.5 million kilometres across India. The company is laying an additional 1,000 km of fibre daily.

5G rollout

Reliance Jio has covered 96 per cent of census towns in India with its 5G network. Ambani noted that about 85 per cent of all operational 5G cells in the country belong to Jio’s network.

“By adding a 5G cell every 10 seconds, we aim to have nearly one million 5G cells operational by December,” said Ambani. The company has also developed its own low-power small cells for targeted high-usage areas, such as tourist locations and religious sites.

Jio’s customer base has crossed the 450 million mark, with over 20 per cent year-on-year revenue growth. Of these, 50 million are 5G users. Ambani highlighted that Jio is uniquely positioned to seamlessly transition its entire 4G customer base to 5G, with minimal additional investment required.

Developer platform

Akash Ambani, chairperson of Reliance Jio, introduced the Jio True5G Developer Platform at the AGM. It is an integrated platform that combines Jio’s 5G network, edge computing and a suite of applications and services. “It offers businesses the flexibility to activate network slices as needed, deploy apps at Jio’s multi-access edge compute locations, and gain access to a wide range of partner apps, all on one platform,” said Akash.

He also announced the opening of the Jio True5G Lab, a space where technology partners and corporate clients can develop, test, and co-create industry-specific solutions. The first such lab will be situated at the Reliance Corporate Park in Navi Mumbai.

“While we provide connectivity services to over 80 per cent of large enterprises in India, our focus will shift towards the small and medium business (SMB) segment to scale this rapidly,” he said.