Mukesh Ambani, the richest man in India, has unveiled a new kind of $12 internet-connected mobile phone in an effort to disrupt the phone industry, which is used by more than a quarter of a billion people"
 |
| www.newshelpar.comJio Bharat phone |
With the launch of the "Jio Bharat" phone, Ambani enters the roughly 250 million-strong Indian market for "feature" phones, which are non-smartphone alternatives. Reliance Jio, the data division of Ambani, says it will initially be trial-only.
The $12 product, sold for Rs999, is the latest innovation from Google and Facebook-backed Jio, which in 2016 completely changed India's mobile telecoms industry by introducing data plans that were initially free as well as incredibly affordable voice rates. Jio and the incumbent Bharti Airtel were ultimately left after the move generated strong rivalry.jio Bharat phone
having an efficient duopoly over the mobile market, which is the fastest expanding in the world. Jio is a part of the corporate giant Reliance Industries.
According to Jayanth Kolla, founder and partner at Bengaluru-based Convergence Catalyst, Jio's price plan "made it clear they were going for every Indian out there" from the start.
Kolla stated that 20% of India's data subscribers still use feature phones and characterised Jio's most recent action as "mopping up" people with the lowest incomes who had previously been discouraged from going online due to prohibitive costs.Ambani, the chairman of Reliance Jio, stated:
Jio Bharat phone
"There are still 250 million Indians using mobile phones who are "stuck" in the 2G era and unable to access basic internet features at a time when the world is on the verge of a 5G revolution."The Bharat, which is another name for India in many languages, is not Jio's first device; it also unveiled a 4G-enabled feature phone.
The phone costs Rs1,500 and is refundable after three years if returned.After Alphabet, Google's parent firm, took a 7.7 percent share in Jio with a $4.5 billion investment in 2020, Jio also launched the Android-enabled JioPhone Next smartphone in 2021 — however this was available only online and was a less commercial success, costing at Rs4,499.Jio will provide a monthly unlimited talk and 14GB data package within India for Rs123 ($1.50) with the Jio Bharat.
Bharti Airtel, for example, presently provides an unlimited talk and 2GB internet package at Rs179 ($2.18).The Jio Bharat will be manufactured in India and will have Reliance's own film and music streaming applications, JioCinema and JioSaavn, as well as digital payment capabilities via India's UPI network and a camera. Despite the fact that Mark Zuckerberg's Meta purchased a 10% interest in Jio with $5.7 billion, WhatsApp and Facebook are not presently available on Jio Bharat.
"The 2G to 4G conversion in India remains critical for the ongoing digital transformation," said Prabhu Ram, CyberMedia Research's head of industry intelligence. Ram went on to say that Jio's new phone was a "step in the right direction" in terms of expanding access to people "at the bottom of the pyramid," but he cautioned: "It remains to be seen.if Jio's efforts are successful"!
0 Comments