Vodafone Idea has been experiencing a decline in its subscriber base due to the delays to launch 5G technology
Indian operator Vodafone Idea will start the deployment of 5G infrastructure in the near future, local press reported, citing Kumar Mangalam Birla, chairman of the Aditya Birla group and one of the shareholders of the mobile carrier.
“[Vodafone Idea’s] 5G roll out will begin soon,” Birla said, without providing further details about the timeline of the launch.
Vodafone Idea is the only private telco in India that still does not offer 5G service and has been experiencing a decline in its subscriber base in recent months due to the delay to launch such technology.
In February, Vodafone Idea’s CEO Akshaya Moondra had said that the telco was in advanced talks with telecom equipment vendors for its 5G rollout strategy.
“We have live 5G clusters in Delhi and Pune where we have partnered with various OEMs to test compatibility of available 5G handsets. Further, we are in advanced stages of discussion with various network vendors for finalization of the rollout strategy,” Moondra had said.
However, a recent report by Indian research firm GlobalData said that Vodafone Idea’s inability to raise the necessary funds to deploy 5G infrastructure could potentially lead to a duopoly between local telcos Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio Infocomm.
According to the report, Vodafone Idea is currently facing challenges in rolling out 5G services because the telco is experiencing difficulties in securing funding for investing in 5G equipment and infrastructure.
According to GlobalData, Vodafone Idea could jeopardize the company’s future in the Indian telecom market if it fails to secure funding. The report also noted that end users will be affected due to the lack of enough competition. The report also suggested that Vodafone Idea could monetize some of its non-core assets such as towers and data centers to raise additional funding for its 5G deployment.
Rival operator Bharti Airtel’s 5G Plus service is available to customers in over 500 cities across India. Airtel is working towards offering nationwide coverage and expects to cover every town and key rural area with 5G by the end of March 2024.
In October 2022, Bharti Airtel initially aunched 5G services in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Siliguri, Nagpur and Varanasi.
The carrier is currently using equipment from Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung to provide 5G services. The carrier 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 previous auction carried out by the Indian government.
Meanwhile, rival operator Reliance Jio Infocomm is also providing 5G service in over 500 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.
Last year, Reliance Jio Infocomm announced 5G contracts with Nordic vendors Ericsson and Nokia.
Reliance Jio had previously secured a mix of wireless spectrum for 5G across 700 MHz, 3.5 GHz, and 26 GHz bands.
Meanwhile, Indian state-owned telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) could launch 5G services by March 2024, according to previous press reports.
