Reliance Jio Approaches DoT for Network Test Before 4G Launch

| Updated: Tuesday, November 4, 2014, 14:14 [IST]

Gearing up for its pan-India 4G services launch in coming months, Reliance Jio Infocomm has approached the Department of Telecom for a network test conducted along with security agencies.

"Reliance Jio has written to DoT to start test of legal interception and monitoring solution in its network across circles which is conducted along with security agencies and is mandatory before launch of telecom services," an official source said.

Reliance Jio Approaches DoT for Network Test Before 4G Launch

Reliance Jio did not immediately comment on the matter.

Mukesh Ambani-led RJio has plans to start 4G services across most of the telecom circles by March 2015.

Reliance Industries has already announced that it will launch commercial 4G telecom service of RJio in 2015 entailing investment of Rs 70,000 crore.

RJio will initially cover about 5,000 towns and cities accounting for over 90 percent of urban India, as well as over 215,000 villages in India and the target is to expand this to over 600,000 villages.

RJio in only company which hold pan-India broadband wireless access spectrum that can be used for 4G services.

As per rules, 2015 is last year for all companies who won BWA spectrum to roll out the services in at least 90 percent of the service areas, failing which the DoT will have the right to withdraw the radiowaves.

RJio, Aircel, Airtel, Tikona Digital and Augere Mauritius won BWA spectrum in mid-2010. Airtel and Aircel have partially launched 4G services using BWA airwaves.

RJio also acquired spectrum in 1800 Mhz band, widely known as 2G spectrum, for Rs 11,054.41 crore in February across 14 out of 22 service areas in country. The company has said it will use these radiowaves also for 4G services.