According to Bharti Airtel, its 5G offering is currently active in 140 cities in India
Indian operator Bharti Airtel has reached 10 million 5G subscribers across the country, the telco said in a release, with 1 million 5G subscribers in Mumbai alone. The Asian operator, which had initially launched 5G in October 2022, had reached 1 million 5G customers across its entire network in November last year.
According to the operator, its 5G offering is currently active in 140 cities in India, and last month, the company’s CEO Gopal Vittal said that Bharti Airtel aims to provide 5G services in 300 cities across the country by March 2024.
The executive also said that Airtel would use its 5G services to bolster its high-value postpaid business. To achieve this, the telco has already identified the top 150 cities that represent 40% of the domestic mobile market. Vittal also said the expansion of 5G services into rural areas will hinge upon the adoption of 5G smartphones in those markets.
In October 2022, Bharti Airtel launched 5G services in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Siliguri, Nagpur and Varanasi. The carrier aims to launch 5G in the city of Kolkata in the near future, according to local press reports.
Airtel noted that its 5G Plus services will be available to customers in a phased manner as the company continues to construct its network across the country.
The carrier is currently using equipment from Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung to provide 5G services. The Indian operator had secured a total of 19,800 megahertz of spectrum in the 900 MHz, 1.8 GHz, 2.1 GHz, 3.3 GHz and 26 GHz bands in a recent auction carried out by the Indian government.
Rival operator Reliance Jio Infocomm recently said its 5G service is already active in 300 cities across India.
Jio is offering the 5G connectivity on an invitational basis, with users living in 5G-enabled cities who have 5G compatible smartphones receiving invitations.
The telco had initially announced the launch of the beta trial of its 5G services in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Varanasi in October 2022. Jio is offering 5G through a Standalone (SA) network architecture.
Last year, Reliance Jio Infocomm announced 5G contracts with Nordic vendors Ericsson and Nokia. The deal with Ericsson marked the first partnership between Jio and Ericsson for Radio Access Network deployment in the country. Reliance Jio had previously secured a mix of wireless spectrum for 5G across 700 MHz, 3.5 GHz and 26 GHz bands. Jio is the only operator with the 700 MHz low-band spectrum.
Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea is currently in advanced talks with telecom equipment vendors for its 5G rollout strategy and will comply with minimum 5G rollout obligations set by the government, the company’s CEO Akshaya Moondra recently said during a conference call with investors.
