India’s richest Mukesh ambani is launching a model of an internet-connected phone for only $12 in an effort to disrupt the market of phones used by a quarter billion people.
Ambani has introduced the “Jio Bharat”, his cheapest entry in the market of non-smartphone feature phones. Around 250mn Indians use these phones. According to Ambani’s data unit Reliance Jio, it will first be offered on a test basis.
The Rs999 product is the latest innovation from Google- and Facebook-backed Jio. Jio transformed India’s telecoms industry in 2016 by introducing super-cheap voice plans and initially-free data. This move ignited fierce competition and ultimately left Jio, Bharti Airtel, and the incumbent controlling the fastest-growing mobile market in the world as an effective duopoly. Jio is a part of Reliance Industries.
Jayanth Kolla is the founder and partner of Convergence Catalyst, a Bengaluru-based firm.
Kolla said that 20% of India’s data subscribers still use feature phones. Jio’s new move is aimed at attracting customers who previously were deterred by high prices from going online.
Ambani, Reliance Jio’s chair, stated: “There are 250mn Indian mobile phone users who remain “trapped” in the 2G age, unable tap into basic internet features at a moment when the world is on the brink of a revolution 5G.”
Bharat is a term for India used in many languages. Jio launched the 4G feature phone JioPhone, priced at Rs1,500 in 2017. The phone was refundable after three years if it was returned.
After Alphabet, the parent company of Google, invested $4.5bn in 2020 to buy 7.7 per-cent, Jio produced in 2021 an Android-enabled JioPhone Next, although it was only sold online and had a lower commercial success, with a price tag of Rs4,499.
Jio Bharat will provide a monthly unlimited data and voice plan in India for just Rs123 ($1.50). Bharti Airtel, a competitor to Jio, currently offers a plan that includes unlimited calls and 2GB of data for Rs179 ($2.18).
The Jio Bharat is being assembled in India. It will include Reliance’s video and music streaming applications, JioCinema, JioSaavn and digital payment capabilities with India’s UPI Network, as well as a camera. WhatsApp and Facebook, despite Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta buying a 10% stake in Jio at $5.7bn are currently not available on Jio Bharat.
Prabhu RAM, CyberMedia Research’s head of industry research, said that the 2G to 4G switchover in India is crucial for the ongoing digital revolution. Ram said that Jio’s new phone is a “step in the right directions” in extending access to customers at the “bottom of the pyramid”, but warned: “It still remains to be determined if Jio’s efforts are successful. . . Gain traction with the consumers.”