Reliance JIO : Mukesh Ambani finally broke the silence on the tariffs

At the ongoing Reliance Industries (RIL) annual general meeting (AGM), chairman and managing director Mukesh Ambani finally took the wraps off Jio’s tariff plans. As expected, the tariff plans can be called rock bottom when you consider the sort of money we have been paying so far. In line with Ambani’s vision to transform India from ‘high data rate market to among the lowest tariff market’, tariff plans start from as low as Rs 50 for 1GB of data. Also as predicted by analysts, these prices are bound to start a tariff war between Reliance Jio and existing network operators.

Before unveiling the tariff plans, Ambani revealed that unlike other network operators who offer thousands of plans that can confuse consumers, Jio only has 10 plans priced between Rs 150 a month to Rs 5,000 a month. Prices for just data start from 5p/MB or Rs 50/GB, and Ambani promises users that more data they use, the lower the tariffs. Users will also get to enjoy unlimited data usage during night time, when the networks are idle. All tariff plans come with unlimited voice calls and messages, as well as unlimited access to Jio’s suite of apps, including JioPlay, JioOnDemand, JioBeats, JioXpressNews, JioSecurity, JioDrive, JioMags and JioMoney among others.

The Jio 4G tariffs start at Rs. 149 for 28 days, for 300MB. For Rs. 499 per month you get a big step up, to 4GB of 4G data, plus unlimited 4G at night, for 28 days. You'll also get 8GB of access from Reliance Jio's upcoming network of Wi-Fi hotspots, further increasing the amount of data you can use. For Rs. 999, that goes up to 10GB of 4G data, and 20GB of Wi-Fi usage, plus unlimited usage at night. Further plans are for Rs. 1,499 for 20GB, Rs. 2,499 for 35GB, and Rs. 3,999 for 60GB of 4G data, and twice as much Wi-Fi usage respectively. The most expensive plan is for Rs. 4,999 for 75GB of 4G usage plus unlimited 4G usage at night, and 150GB of Wi-Fi data.

There will also be no roaming charges, across India, to any network, it was announced. "Put an end to all voice call charges for all voice calls that are domestic," Ambani said. This applies to calls to other networks as well, not just calls within the network.

He also added that data must be affordable for all users. "Current market practice is to charge for data a base rate between Rs. 4,000 and Rs. 10,000 - Jio will have a base rate which is 1/10th of this," Ambani said. "Our data plans go even further with an effective rate of 5p/MB or Rs. 50/ GB." Students will get 25 percent extra data on the tariffs, if they show a valid ID when signing up for Jio.

Apart from the data rates, Ambani also announced that the full suite of Jio apps - for streaming movies, music, and live television - will be completely free for all users until December 2017.