IUC Effect: Reliance Jio Offering 30 Minutes Free Talk Time To its Customers

Reliance Jio is reportedly offering 30 minutes of free talk time to its customers, reports Economic Times. The development comes two days after Jio announced that it will charge 6 paise per minute for outgoing calls to other networks. According to the reports, the telco is providing free talk time to protect its user base in the country. However, this offer is only for a limited period.

"Customers will get free talk time of 30 minutes the first time they recharge their phones. This one-time offer will be available for the first seven days from the date the plan was announced," a person aware of the development was quoted by ET. Adding to that, "This is a handholding exercise to help a smooth transition for subscribers."

In fact, Jio's senior executive Umesh Upadhyay, issued a video on YouTube to explain the IUC and why they have imposed these charges. He said that the TRAI was supposed to bring down the IUC rates to zero. But now the regulator is reconsidering the matter which actually created the uncertainty in the sector.

On the other hand, both Airtel and the Vodafone took to Twitter sharing views opposing Reliance Jio's move. Airtel's Tweet reads: "For some, unlimited means something else. For us, unlimited voice calls have always meant truly unlimited voice calls. Switch to Airtel now. #AbTohSahiChuno." While Vodafone says "Relax, there will be no charges on Vodafone calls to other networks. So keep enjoying what we promised you - truly free calls on Vodafone unlimited plans."

Reliance Jio's Tariff Hike Will Support Industry ARPU

On the other hand, a new report by India Ratings believes that Jio's decision to start charging 6 paise per minute through top-up vouchers on outgoing voice calls to other networks will improve its average revenue per user (ARPU). However, the levy of additional charges by the telco will discourage users to call other operators from Jio. The report pointed out that this will also help Airtel and Vodafone but for the short term.