Jio implements additional 20 MHz spectrum across Tamil Nadu to enhance subscriber experience
Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd (“RJIL”) in March announced that it had successfully acquired the right to use spectrum in all 22 circles across India in the recently concluded spectrum auctions conducted by the Department of Telecommunications, Government of India.
The company had acquired spectrums in 850MHZ, 1800MHZ and 2300MHZ bands respectively. In Tamil Nadu, Jio has acquired additional 5 MHz of 850MHz band; 5MHz of 1800MHz band; and 10 MHz of 2300 MHz band. As on date, Jio has gone ahead with the deployment of all the three spectrums across all 22000 sites spread across the state. With this, the total bandwidth available for usage in 850 MHz, 1800 MHz & 2300 MHz will be enhanced by 50%.
Spectrum augmentation of this magnitude will certainly help further improve the network experience manifold for entire JIO subscriber base in Tamil Nadu. This has resulted in network capacity going up by 50%, much higher data speeds and enhanced customer network experience in Tamil Nadu.
Considering the ongoing pandemic situation, curtailed movements & lock down, this is a timely addition, which will help professionals working from home, students to attend classes online, Businesses running from home , to seamlessly carry out their activities while being safe at home. The enhanced connectivity & experience will certainly be of great help to health segment & frontline workers who are relentless trying to contain this pandemic.
According to the latest TRAI data, Jio has close to 2.5 crore subscriber base and 30.3% customer market share in Tamil Nadu. Due to the increasing demand for 4G towers, Jio Tamil Nadu has expanded its 4G network by 20% in 2021. Jio continues to be leader in the state in terms of deployed sites across State. Currently Jio has over 22K 4G network sites in the state, the largest with 4G footprint in Tamil Nadu.
Reliance Jio acquired a total of 488.35MHZ (850MHZ, 1800MHZ and 2300MHZ included) spectrum for 22 circles in the recent spectrum auction at a cost of Rs.57,123 crores for a period of 20 years. With this, Jio has increased its footprint significantly by 55% to a total of 1717 MHZ. Jio currently has 426 million subscribers and with the enhanced spectrum footprint, RJIL will enhance network capacity to service its existing users. This enhancement will also help in adding the next 300 million users that will move to digital services and towards transition to 5G services too.
—Jothi.S