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‘New launch’s Impact is limited’

Jio announced the launch of a new entry level 4G feature phone, the JioBharat (JB) phone in addition to new entry priced unlimited plans…reports Asian Lite News

Jio’s new launch increases competitive intensity but the impact is limited, Goldman Sachs has said in a report.

“We believe Jio’s new product launch (announced 3rd July post market) should help it garner incremental wireless subscribers, which we would view as a positive catalyst for the RIL stock. However, with the industry feature phone base continuing to decline (50-60 mn total shipments in FY23), we see the potential revenue impact, while positive for Jio and negative for Bharti, as likely to be limited,” Goldman Sachs said.

Jio announced the launch of a new entry level 4G feature phone, the JioBharat (JB) phone in addition to new entry priced unlimited plans. This opens a segment below Jio phones, priced at Rs 999 (below most 2G feature-phones). The new plan for JB phones offers unlimited voice calls and 14GB data at Rs 123 per month, lower than Bharti’s and IDEA’s unlimited plans at Rs 179 per month. JB phones run on a RTOS developed by Jio and manufactured by Karbonn in addition to other OEMs.

JP Morgan said in a report that this could disrupt the 2G market and help Jio gain share post fading success of Jio phone devices. Bharti recently raised 2G prices from Rs 99 to Rs 155 across all circles while Vi took this in one circle.

This disruptive step can halt incremental tariff increases for 2G and help JIO gain share in that segment, the report said.

Jio already had become aggressive at the premium end in March’23 through aggressive postpaid plans in addition to fiber pricing. We think this is negative for both Bharti and IDEA given returning disruption and tariff aggression at the bottom of the pyramid and signals lack of support for 4G tariff actions, it added.

Reliance Jio is launching an entry-level phone with more aggressive plans vs. the competition to attract feature phone users. While the price point is competitive, given a break-even period of over 15 months for a new user, we do not view this as immediately disruptive for Bharti but would be watchful, Morgan Stanley said in a note.

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Jio’s new Rs 999 phone upsets rivals

India still has an estimated 250 million mobile subscribers trapped in the 2G era with feature phones…reports Asian Lite News

Reliance Jio’s Rs 999 costing 4G phone launch will help the telecom major grab market share among new feature phone sales, including expanding its subscriber base in the 2G segment, said Citi Research in a report.

“After Jio’s renewed attempts in Mar’23 at making inroads in the high-end postpaid and prepaid 4G and 5G segments by introducing new tariff plans, it has now embarked upon a plan to target India’s 250m low-end 2G market,” the report said. Jio on Monday launched a 4G-enabled phone ‘Jio Bharat’ at only Rs 999 per unit, the lowest entry price for an internet-enabled mobile phone.

A recharge of Rs 123 per month will provide users with unlimited voice calls and 14 GB data, compared to other operators’ Rs 179 plan for voice calls and only 2 GB data.

India still has an estimated 250 million mobile subscribers trapped in the 2G era with feature phones.

Jio Bharat is being launched with the objective of empowering every Indian with the power of digital services, especially those who cannot afford a smartphone, Jio said in a release.

Beta trial for the first 1 million Jio Bharat phones will begin on July 7, 2023. The phone comes with inbuilt apps such as JioSaavn and Jio Cinema.

It also offers UPI through Jio Pay.

“Jio’s increased focus on grabbing new subscribers could also be perceived as further reducing the likelihood of any near-term tariff hike,” the Citi report said.

According to Citi, the new phone’s specifications (like screen size, apps, etc.) are inferior to the JioPhone that was launched in 2017. However, the key attractiveness is likely to be the monthly plan of Rs 123 that offers unlimited voice.

“However, given the phone’s Rs 999 upfront price tag, it may initially appeal only to those looking to buy a new feature phone and may not immediately disrupt Bharti and Voda Idea’s 2G base. Unlike Bharti’s clear premiumisation strategy, Jio also remains focused on further expanding its subscriber base.”

“Additionally, this development could arguably signal reduced probability of a tariff hike in the near term,” the Citi report added. (ANI)

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Reliance dominates Indian brands

TCS is ranked at the top, Infosys is ranked number 3, followed by HDFC, Airtel, LIC, Mahindra, SBI and ICICI…reports Asian Lite News

Reliance has two brands in the top ten list of Indian brands, as per a recent report.

As per an Interbrand report, Reliance Industries is ranked number 2 and Jio is ranked number 5 in the top ten list of Indian brands for 2023.

TCS is ranked at the top, Infosys is ranked number 3, followed by HDFC, Airtel, LIC, Mahindra, SBI and ICICI.

The Total List Value is US$ 100 billion with a growth of 167 per cent in the last 10 years. The GDP growth over the decade is 138 per cent. The Total Value of the table has reached US$ 100 billion for the first time ever, Interbrand report said.

The brand value of Top 3 brands makes up 46 per cent of the Total Value of top ten brands. Top five brands represent more than a third (40 per cent) of the total value of the Table. For the first time ever in 10 years, there are three Technology Brands in the Top 5.

The Total Brand Value of Top 10 brands (INR 4,950 billion) is more than the value of the rest of the table (40 brands: Total Value: INR 3,360 billion) Fastest Growing Sectors over the last decade are FMCG (CAGR 25 per cent), Home Building & Infrastructure (CAGR 17 per cent) and Technology (CAGR 14 per cent).

The Home Building & Infrastructure sector has grown the most (from INR 69 billion to INR 344 billion), followed by Technology (from INR 693 billion to INR 2.5 trillion) over the last 10 years. While the Financial Services sector still has the greatest number of brands, nine, and the Home Building & Infrastructure sector has seen the highest jump in terms of the number of brands with seven brands since 2014.

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Reliance Jio, GSMA team up to upskill rural women

Jio.

The national roll-out phase is now underway, with the programme being rolled out across 10 states…reports Asian Lite News

Reliance Jio and global mobile network operators’ organisation GSMA on Tuesday announced the roll-out of their digital skills programme to train rural women in India.

The programme aims to provide need-based training to rural women and individuals from marginalised/low-income groups to help them make meaningful use of digital access.

The national roll-out phase is now underway, with the programme being rolled out across 10 states.

“We are proud to partner with GSMA in this programme to take digital skills training to the women across India and be the wind beneath their wings,” said Isha Ambani, Director, Reliance Jio.

As per the GSMA’s ‘Mobile Gender Gap Report 2022’, women in India are 41 per cent less likely than men to use mobile internet.

A total of 330 million women in India still do not use mobile internet, compared to 248 million men. Lack of literacy and digital skills is one of the top reported barriers to mobile internet use.

As a part of the programme, the GSMA and Jio teams worked together to assess prevalent digital skill gaps and develop need-based digital skills training toolkits that are India-specific.

Over 1,000 rural women and men from Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu participated and provided inputs for the refinement of the digital training toolkits during the trial phase.

Reliance Foundation will be supporting the roll-out through its large network and self-help groups, particularly in rural areas.

“More needs to be done to ensure women are not being left behind in an increasingly connected world. We are excited to partner with Jio and Reliance Foundation to take the Digital Skills Programme national and help accelerate digital inclusion for women,” said Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA.

The GSMA is a global organisation unifying the mobile ecosystem to discover, develop and deliver innovation foundational to positive business environments and societal change.

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Jio teams up with Motorola for ‘True 5G’

Reliance Jio launches True 5G services in 11 cities

The smartphone company has rolled out software updates which will enable users to use Jio’s True 5G across its extensive 5G portfolio…reports Asian Lite News

Reliance Jio on Wednesday announced its partnership with Motorola to enable ‘True 5G’ across Motorola’s extensive 5G smartphone portfolio in India.

The smartphone company has rolled out software updates which will enable users to use Jio’s True 5G across its extensive 5G portfolio.

“Motorola comes with advanced 5G features such as carrier aggregation, 4×4 Mimo and support for most 5G bands in India. These features along with Jio True 5G network will unleash the true potential of 5G in India,” Sunil Dutt, President, Reliance Jio, said in a statement.

“All Jio users using Motorola devices will be able to access truly unlimited 5G internet under the Jio Welcome Offer in areas where Jio True 5G has or is being rolled out rapidly,” he added.

With stand-alone 5G architecture, an advanced 5G network, and zero dependencies on the 4G network, Motorola 5G smartphone users will now be able to make the most of Jio’s True 5G experience.

“Motorola smartphones give an exceptionally reliable, optimised, and fast 5G experience across price points, staying true to our commitment of giving True 5G – the most comprehensive, no compromise 5G smartphone portfolio to Indian consumers with support for up to 13 5G bands across price points,” Prashanth Mani, Executive Director, Motorola Asia Pacific, said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Reliance Jio on Wednesday announced the largest multi-state launch of its True 5G services across 11 cities.

The cities include Lucknow, Thiruvananthapuram, Mysuru, Nashik, Aurangabad, Chandigarh, Mohali, Panchkula, Zirakpur, Kharar and Dera Bassi.

“We are proud to roll out Jio True 5G in these 11 cities and make it one of our largest launches since we started rolling out True 5G services,” a Jio spokesperson said in a statement.

“These cities are important tourism destinations as well as key education hubs of our country. With the launch of Jio’s True 5G services, consumers of the region will not just get the best telecommunication network but will also get infinite growth opportunities in the areas of e-governance, education, automation, Artificial Intelligence, gaming, healthcare, agriculture, IT, and SMEs,” he added.

The company said Reliance Jio has become the first and the only operator to launch 5G services in Thiruvananthapuram, Mysuru, Nashik, Aurangabad, Chandigarh Tricity, including areas of Mohali, Panchkula, Zirakpur, Kharar, and Dera Bassi.

Jio users in these cities will be invited to the Jio Welcome Offer, to experience unlimited data at up to 1 Gbps+ speeds, at no additional cost, starting on Wednesday, the company mentioned.

Earlier this week, Reliance Jio launched its True 5G services in Andhra Pradesh.

The 5G services were launched in Tirumala, Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, and Guntur districts

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Jio Financial Services all set to cross new milestone

Jio.

Assuming the 6.1 per cent stake in RIL is realised over time, with a Rs 1 trillion networth, JFS could be the fifth-largest financial services firm in India….reports Asian Lite News

After demerger, Jio Financial Services (JFS) could be the fifth-largest financial services company in terms of networth, foreign brokerage, Macquarie said in a report.

Reliance Industries (RIL) recently made an announcement to demerge its financial services business and rename it Jio Financial Services (JFS).

RIL would transfer 6.1 per cent RIL shares held by its wholly owned subsidiary to JFS. This clearly shows the grand ambitions the group has in financial services.

JFS will differ from most other fintechs, as it will have access to huge amounts of data, gathered from non-financial relationships; it can process and analyse this data in real time, to offer financial services, similar to Alibaba, Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google.

Also, unlike other fintechs, JFS will have a large balance sheet, not be asset-light and eventually manufacture most product offerings, giving it a significant competitive advantage, in our view.

Assuming the 6.1 per cent stake in RIL is realised over time, with a Rs 1 trillion networth, JFS could be the fifth-largest financial services firm in India.

RIL already has a NBFC licence which it can leverage to kick start consumer/merchant lending in a big way. Also, IRDA has been open to giving insurance licences and RIL may get into insurance verticals.

JFS can be a real threat to fintech business models as well as NBFCs, in our view. JFS not only can offer attractive rates in merchant lending and digital unsecured lending markets, but also be reasonably competitive in the secured lending market eventually, in our view.

Reliance group has a network of more than 15,000 stores across several formats (supermarkets, digital stores, etc) and a vast customer base of 400 million+ in telecom and 200mn+ in retail (there could be overlaps here).

JFS can leverage on network effects and in concept be a formidable threat for incumbents, Macquarie said.

Considering banks have significant cost of funds advantage and ability to do a lot more business that NBFCs cannot do, JFS’s impact on the banking sector could be a bit more moderate.

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Nokia, Ericsson team up with Jio to deliver 5G

Reliance Jio plans to deploy a 5G standalone network which will interwork with its 4G network…reports Asian Lite News

Handset makers Nokia and Ericsson on Monday announced that they have inked a deal with Reliance Jio to build one of the largest 5G networks in India.

Nokia said that it has been selected as a major supplier by Reliance Jio to supply 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) equipment from its comprehensive AirScale portfolio countrywide in a multi-year deal. Meanwhile, Ericsson said it has entered into a long-term strategic 5G contract with Jio to roll out 5G Standalone (SA) in India.

“We are pleased to be working with Nokia for our 5G SA deployment in India. Jio is committed to continuously investing in the latest network technologies to enhance the experience of all its customers. We are confident that our partnership with Nokia will deliver one of the most advanced 5G networks globally,” Akash Ambani, Chairman, Chairman Reliance Jio, said in a statement.

Under the contract, Nokia will supply equipment from its AirScale portfolio, including base stations, high-capacity 5G Massive MIMO antennas, and Remote Radio Heads (RRH) to support different spectrum bands and self-organising network software.

Reliance Jio plans to deploy a 5G standalone network which will interwork with its 4G network. The network will enable Reliance Jio to deliver advanced 5G services such as massive machine-to-machine communications, network slicing, and ultra-low latency.

“This is a significant win for Nokia in an important market and a new customer with one of the largest RAN footprints in the world. This ambitious project will introduce millions of people across India to premium 5G services, enabled by our industry-leading AirScale portfolio,” said Pekka Lundmark, President, and CEO at Nokia.

Ericsson’s energy-efficient 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) products and solutions from Ericsson Radio System and E-band microwave mobile transport solution will be deployed in the 5G network for Jio. All products and solutions are deployed on new-build 5G SA networks, designed to maximise the benefits of 5G to CSPs and their customers — whether individual subscribers or enterprise and industry customers.

“India is building the world-class digital infrastructure that will drive innovation, job creation, and entrepreneurship across the country,” said Borje Ekholm, President and CEO, Ericsson.

“We are happy to partner with Jio in those ambitions through Ericsson 5G Standalone connectivity, which will be a major catalyst in meeting those digital transformation goals across society, enterprise and industry,” Ekholm added.

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Jio 5G roll out likely from August 15

Jio said its 5G network will enable the next generation of digital solutions that will accelerate India’s AI-driven march towards becoming a $5 trillion economy.….reports Asian lite news

As the race to launch 5G services for millions of smartphone and internet users take steam, Reliance Jio may launch its 5G services on August 15.

Earlier this week, Akash Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Jio Infocomm, said that they will celebrate ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ with a pan-India 5G rollout.

“Jio is committed to offering world-class, affordable 5G and 5G-enabled services. We will provide services, platforms and solutions that will accelerate India’s digital revolution, especially in crucial sectors like education, healthcare, agriculture, manufacturing and e-governance,” he had emphasised after emerging as the leader in the 5G spectrum auction, including the pricey 700 MHz band.

With ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav,’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi has shared his vision of building a new Aatmanirbhar Bharat by the year 2022.

The initiative is to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of independence and the history of people, culture and achievements.

The official journey of ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ commenced on March 12 2021 which started a 75-week countdown to our 75th anniversary of independence and will end on August 15, a day when pan-India 5G roll out can be announced.

“Jio is fully ready for 5G rollout in the shortest period of time because of its nationwide fibre presence, all-IP network with no legacy infrastructure, indigenous 5G stack and strong global partnerships across the technology ecosystem,” according to the company.

Jio said its 5G network will enable the next generation of digital solutions that will accelerate India’s AI-driven march towards becoming a $5 trillion economy.

“The speed, scale and societal impact of Jio’s 4G rollout is unmatched anywhere in the world. Now, with a bigger ambition and stronger resolve, Jio is set to lead India’s march into the 5G era,” said Akash Ambani.

According to a Nomura report, 700 MHz band could potentially give Reliance Jio “an edge in terms of network quality, especially indoors, and this could increase investors’ concerns on further spectrum outgo for Bharti if R-Jio were able to offer significant differentiation in network quality (vs Bharti) with 5G on 700 band”.

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Jio, Mzaalo partner to deliver digital entertainment

The collaboration with Jio enables us to expand our digital footprint and democratise digital entertainment for the Indian hinterland,” Vikram Tanna, COO, Mzaalo said in a statement…reports Asian Lite News

Mzaalo, a gamified video and entertainment ecosystem on Thursday announced that it has formed a strategic partnership with Jio to deliver digital entertainment to underserved audiences throughout rural India.

Through this partnership, Mzaalo’s premium content catalogue and rewards ecosystem will be available on Jio’s low-cost phones, and freely accessible for millions of rural Indians, most of whom are first-time internet users.

“We are thrilled to partner with Jio to offer our premium content and rewards ecosystem across 150 million JioPhone users in Hindi and 9 Indian languages. The collaboration with Jio enables us to expand our digital footprint and democratise digital entertainment for the Indian hinterland,” Vikram Tanna, COO, Mzaalo said in a statement.

In addition to this partnership, Mzaalo has also been chosen to join the Jio Developers Build for Bharat Growth Pad Program. As a member, Mzaalo and its community will receive special programme benefits like first market access program, year-round technical support from Jio, an exclusive community of leaders for mentorship within Jio’s rich leadership ecosystem, JioAds credits, tools and services, training on Jio Developer Tools, and more.

Mzaalo is available for download on JioStore for JioPhone device’s app store. Users can consume premium content and get rewarded while watching content and purchase their favourite merchandise through a secure and trusted video streaming platform.

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Glance to raise $200 million from Jio Platforms

Notably, Glance is aiming to create the world’s largest live content and commerce ecosystem on the lock screen and will use the funds raised to expand globally…reports Asian Lite News

Leading AI-driven lock-screen platform Glance has agreed to raise $200 million from Jio Platforms (Jio) in its ‘Series D’ round of funding, subject to regulatory approvals.

According to Jio, the proposed investment is aimed at accelerating Glance’s launch in several key international markets outside of Asia such as the US, Brazil, Mexico and Russia.

Notably, Glance is aiming to create the world’s largest live content and commerce ecosystem on the lock screen and will use the funds raised to expand globally.

“Glance has grown at a phenomenal pace over the past two years and has given users a truly unique solution by unlocking the power of the lock screen for experiencing the internet, live content, creator driven entertainment commerce and gaming,” Akash Ambani, Director, Jio Platforms, said in a statement.

“With the help of this investment, Glance expects to launch in several key markets globally as well as extend the experience to millions of Jio users, further reinforcing our commitment to provide the most advanced and next-level tech and digital ecosystem for consumers in India and beyond,” he added.

In addition to Jio Platforms, Glance is also backed by technology giant Google and Silicon Valley-based venture fund Mithril Capital.

Concurrent with the proposed investment, Glance has also entered into a business partnership arrangement with Reliance Retail Ventures, providing for Glance’s ‘lock screen platform’ to be integrated into the JioPhone Next smartphones.

Besides, the deal is also expected to lead to further strategic collaborations between Glance, Reliance Retail and Jio across devices, commerce, content and gaming ecosystem.

At present, Glance’s lock screen platform is present on more than 400 million devices across markets in Asia.

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