International roaming services have witnessed significant growth in India following the easing of travel restrictions post the Covid-19 pandemic. The initiati­ves of the Department of Telecom­mu­ni­cations (DoT) have also bolstered custo­mer confidence by addressing the issue of high bills previously associated with these services.

For instance, in 2022, the DoT revised its policy on the issuance/renewal of a no objection certificate (NOC) on the sale/re­nt of international roaming SIM cards and global calling cards of foreign operators in India. The move was undertaken to protect the interests of Indian citizens travelling ab­road, and streamline pro­ce­dures to align with other licences/re­g­istrations.

Following this move, customers across the country have increasingly adopted in­ternational roaming services encompassing voice calls, SMSs, e-mails, mobile bro­adband and applications that require mo­bile data, such as language translators.

As the uptake of these services continues to rise, telcos like Bharti Airtel, Relia­nce Jio and Vodafone Idea Limited (Vi) have been introducing various internati­onal roaming plans to attract subscribers in this domain.

Telcos compete in a new battleground

With the roll-out of 5G networks, telcos have identified new opportunities in terms of international roaming plans. The new 5G roaming SIMs provide improved data privacy, enhanced protection against hacking and seamless global roaming connections. As a result, the three private telcos have been vying to grab a larger portion of this ever-expanding pie.

All three private operators have intensified their efforts to attract higher-paying post-paid and prepaid customers, aiming to boost the average revenue per user.

For instance, Airtel and Jio have rece­ntly introduced competitive international roaming packs with a focus on pricing, convenience and flexibility. Airtel has in­troduced a single travel pack for 184 countries, while Jio is offering other features such as in-flight calling and data packs for international travellers. Vi has traditionally maintained a foothold in the international post-paid customer base, claiming to have a larger share of customers in this segment compared to its competitors.

Greater thrust on international roaming plans

International roaming plans being offered by these telcos vary in duration, ranging from short-term one-day plans to long-term plans valid for up to one year. A look at the plans offered by the three telcos…

Airtel

Airtel offers an international roaming plan priced at Rs 649, which has one day of validity. Under this plan, users get 500 MB of data, 100 minutes of free local and outgoing calls to India, unlimited incoming calls up to 10 SMSs.

Regarding week-long plans, Airtel introduced a 10-day plan priced at Rs 899. This plan offers 100 minutes of free outgoing local calls, calls to India and unlimited incoming calls. The plan also offers 10 SMSs and 1 GB of mobile data.

Airtel also introduced a Rs 2,999 plan for its post-paid users, which comes with 10 days of validity. The plan offers 5 GB of high-speed data, along with 100 minutes of local calls and outgoing calls to India, and unlimited incoming calls. After the consumption of 5 GB of data, users get access to unlimited internet at a reduced speed.

Additionally, Airtel’s one-month international roaming plan starts at Rs 2,998. The plan comes with a 30-day validity and provides users access to 5 GB of data. It offers 200 minutes of local calls, calls to India and unlimited incoming calls. The plan also allows users to send up to 20 SMSs. Another plan offered by Airtel is priced at Rs 3,999 and it offers a 30-day validity. With this plan, users get 100 minutes of local and outgoing calls to India per day, along with unlimited data. Upon reaching the data usage threshold of 12 GB, Airtel offers unlimited data with reduced speeds. The company also offers a 90-day pack priced at Rs 5,999. With this plan, users get 900 minutes of local calls, along with outgoing calls to India. It provides us­ers with 2 GB of high-speed data, followed by unlimited data at reduced speeds.

Finally, Airtel offers a 365-day plan pri­c­ed at Rs 2,997. The plan offers 100 mi­­nutes of local calls, outgoing calls to In­dia, unlimited incoming calls, 2 GB data and 20 SMSs.

Jio

Jio’s roaming plans start at Rs 575, which has a one-day validity. This plan offers 250 MB of high-speed data, followed by un­limited data at a reduced speed of 64 kbps. Users can send up to 100 SMSs, 100 minutes of local calls, outgoing calls to India and unlimited incoming calls.

The next plan offered by Jio is priced at Rs 2,875 with a validity of seven days. This week-long plan provides users with 100 minutes of outgoing local calls, daily calls to India and 100 SMSs per day. Users also get 250 MB of high-speed data per day, followed by unlimited data at 64 kbps.

Jio has also introduced a month-long plan in a different price bracket. Priced at Rs 5,571, this 30-day plan comes with 5 GB of high-speed data, followed by unlimited data at 64 kbps. It also offers 1,500 minutes of local calls, outgoing calls to India, free incoming calls and up to 1,500 SMSs.

Vi

Vi’s international roaming plan starts at Rs 695, which has a validity of one day. It co­mes with two hours of local calls and outgoing calls to India, unlimited incoming calls and 1 GB of data. Vi also offers a seven-day plan priced at Rs 995. With this, users will get access to 500 MB of data and 150 minutes of local calls and outgo­i­ng calls to India. However, this plan does not offer free incoming calls.

Vi also offers an additional seven-day plan priced at Rs 3,495. This plan provides 7 GB of data, two hours of outgoing local calls and daily calls to India, and unlimited incoming calls. Vi introduced another plan priced at Rs 4,695, which offers a 10-day validity period. The plan comes with 10 GB of data and offers the same benefits as the Rs 3,495 plan.

Vi’s one-month plans start at Rs 295, which has a validity of 28 days. This plan is suitable for users who do not require data but want limited calling benefits. The plan provides 40 minutes of outgoing and incoming calls and does not come offer free incoming calls. Finally, Vi offers an­other plan for 28 days priced at Rs 6,995. Under this plan, users get 15 GB of data and two hours of local calls and outgoing calls to India per day.

Revamping offerings

As telcos aim to capture a larger share of the international roaming market, they ha­ve been making efforts to revamp their off­erings, not only in terms of pricing and voi­ce and data offerings but also in terms of cu­stomer support and other related parameters.

For instance, in December 2022, Airtel revamped its international roaming offerings to provide services across 184 countries under a single pack. Additionally, the company began offering real-time usage tracking and customer support through WhatsApp. Airtel has also set up kiosks at several major international airports, allowing customers to activate the roaming packs shortly before boarding their flights. Similar below-the-line initiatives were undertaken by the telco to create awareness. This includes communication about the packs at different Airtel touchpoints and e-mails and messages sent to registered users.

As a result, Airtel experienced a remar­kable 110 per cent increase in international travel pack subscriptions in April 2023. Mumbai alone achieved a 102 per cent year-on-year growth, following an increa­se in international travel by 35 per cent during the same period.

Meanwhile, Vi announced unlimited in­­­­ter­national roaming packs to be made av­ai­lable in 29 countries, encompassing the top travel destinations around the world.

Future trends

Currently, the international roaming segment contributes less than 3 per cent of telcos’ revenue. With the advent of 5G networks and travel restrictions being lifted, operators can anticipate a larger market share in the future. Further, telcos are working on making the procurement or change of SIM cards for international roaming usage more accessible and affordable for customers.

These initiatives are expected to aid in expanding telcos’ post-paid customer base since the majority of subscribers for these plans are post-paid customers. However, industry experts predict that Jio and Airtel can capitalise on Vi’s share of the post-paid customer base by offering them flexibility and convenience in international roaming, coupled with attractive pricing. This is be­ca­use post-paid customers are less likely to be swayed by competitive pricing alone.