Reliance Jio, one of India's telecom networks, is targeting the 250 million people who are still using 2G wireless services in the country by announcing its newest Jio Bharat phone platform, which can update existing feature phones to become internet-enabled.
Jio is offering the new Jio Bharat phone service for about $12 (INR999) monthly. The service will run on its 4G network, complete with affordable plans. The beta trial started on July 7. The trial aims to test the scalability of the platform and processes for upgrading millions of feature phones.
In its press release, Jio stated, "While India is leading the 5G revolution on one side with the transformational Jio True 5G network, there is a section of society that is unable to reap the benefits of digital technology in [its] entirety. India still has 250 million mobile subscribers trapped in the 2G era with feature phones."
These feature phones do not provide access to the internet. But the Jio Bharat platform can enable data capability on these entry-level phones.
The operator is teaming up with other phone brands, starting with Karbonn, to build new Jio Bharat phones.
Jio claims that the price of its Jio Bharat service is 30% cheaper and provides seven times more data compared to other feature phones offered by other operators. The plan will be billed every 28 days, which means users will get 14 GB of data for their feature phones.
Chairman of Reliance Jio, Mr. Akash Ambani, commented, "There are still 250 million mobile phone users in India who remain “trapped” in the 2G era, unable to tap into basic features of the internet at a time when the world stands at the cusp of a 5G revolution."
"[Six] 6 years ago, when Jio was launched, we made it clear that Jio will leave no stone unturned to democratize [the] internet and pass the benefits of technology to every Indian. Technology will no longer remain a privilege for a select few. The new Jio Bharat phone is another step in that direction. It is at the center of innovation, and it continues to demonstrate our focus on bringing disproportionate and true value for different segments of users with meaningful, real-life use cases," he said, adding that Jio will continue to eradicate the country's digital divide for every citizen in their nation.