Vodafone Idea To Bundle Broadband Service With 4G Tariff Plans: Report

Ever since Reliance Jio launched its JioFiber services, almost all broadband companies are launching new offers. Major operators such as Airtel have launched a new plans with similar benefits. It seems that Vodafone Idea is set to jump the bandwagon soon.

According to the Economic Times report, the company is planning to bundle its 4G prepaid and postpaid mobile plans with its home broadband services. However, the company will have to invest more in the broadband segment to go head-to-head with dominant players such as JioFiber and Airtel.

"Voda Idea plans to use a mix of global learning's, and subsidiary YOU Broadband's network infrastructure resources, to bundle home broadband services to its high-spending 4G mobile users in its top 10-to-12 markets," a person familiar with the matter was quoted by ET.

Vodafone Idea has been losing its customers, ever since it announced the minimum recharge plan of Rs. 35 every month. For instance, Vodafone Idea lost 5.69 million users in May. However, it is still the largest operator in the country with a base of 383.41 million subscribers. While Reliance Jio has 331.25 million users, Airtel has 320.35 million subscribers.

Meanwhile, Vodafone has launched Turbonet 4G (network integration and deployment of new-age technologies such as spectrum re-farming) in Karnataka. The company has also deployed L900 technology (900 Mhz band) for its customers in Bangalore, which will improve the efficiency of the network in closed spaces.

Our Take

Vodafone-owned You Broadband is not that popular in India. The reason could be the company's less-aggressive approach towards launching new plans. But now it seems that the company is looking at this space to attract users. However, for that the company needs to invest heavily in the space too.

On the other hand, Vodafone is a bit late in terms of launching plans because both Airtel and Jio have announced many offers. So it would be interesting to see how this step benefits Vodafone Idea.