TV sets, unlimited calls, OTT subscription - Mukesh Ambani unleashes Jio Fiber with freebies

“Today, I want to announce that starting September 5, 2019 - on the third anniversary of Jio's launch - we are launching Jio Fiber services on a commercial basis.” This announcement by the chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, Mukesh Ambani was certainly the highlight of the company’s 42nd (Post IPO) Annual General Meeting.

Jio Fiber is Reliance Jio’s fibre-to-home service that promises to provide homes access to hi-speed internet and high definition entertainment. “Starting August 15, 2018, we invited registrations of interest from across India so that we could prioritise Jio Fiber rollout in localities with the highest interest. The response was simply overwhelming. We received over 15 million registrations from nearly 1,600 towns. Based on these registrations, we have drawn up a plan to reach 20 million residences and 15 million business establishments,” Ambani said.

Jio Fiber plans, that start at Rs 700 per month, will allow access to 100 mbps broadband service, and unlimited phone calls to any landline or mobile network in India. Customers will also get a digital set-top box, opening up doors to high definition entertainment. There are plans that go up to Rs 10,000 per month, which will give access to 1 gbps internet speed, Internet of Things (IoT) and many other Jio facilities.

“The experience of Jio Fiber and Jio Set-Top-Box really comes to life when combined with an LED Television. So, Jio Fiber customers who opt for our annual plans, called Jio-Forever plans, will get an HD or 4K LED television set and a 4K set-top-box absolutely free. We are calling this the Jio Fiber Welcome Offer,” announced Ambani.

The Jio Fiber plans will “come bundled” with subscriptions to most leading “premium OTT applications.” “Also, for the first time in India, we are introducing a disruptive concept for watching new movies. Premium Jio Fiber customers will be able to watch movies in their living rooms the same day these movies are released in theatres! We call this Jio First-Day-First-Show.” Ambani said that Reliance intends to launch the First-day-First-Show service by mid 2020.

He also informed the shareholders that Reliance Jio's customer base has crossed 340 million users, and that the telecom operator is signing up more than 10 million new customers each month.