Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited (RJIL) has revised the timeline for launching its 4G services. The company which was expected to introduce 4G services in 2014 will now commercially launch the service in 2015, entailing investments of Rs 700 billion.
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) promoted RJIL holds pan-India broadband wireless access (BWA) spectrum which can be used for offering high speed internet services. The company had acquired BWA spectrum through auctions in 2010 for Rs 128.47 billion.
Speaking at the 40th Annual General Meeting of RIL, Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director, informed the company?s shareholders that year 2015 will see the phased launch of RJIL?s 4G services across India.
In a phased rollout of services, the company?s 4G network will cover all states, including 5,000 towns and cities, accounting for over 90 per cent of urban India and over 215,000 villages. Eventually, the network will encompass each of over 600,000 villages.
Further, Ambani stated that at present over 10,000 full time RJIL employees along with 30,000 professionals (including technology partners and vendors) are working towards the launch of the company?s 4G services. In addition, over 100,000 people are working across the country for creating the digital infrastructure backbone for RJIL?s 4G network.
At present, limited field trials of the company?s network for broadband services are underway. According to Ambani, the expanded field trials will commence in August 2014 across multiple cities. These trials would continue through the end of 2014 and early part of 2015.
As per the service rollout norms, 2015 is last year for all companies who won BWA spectrum in 2010 to roll out the services in at least 90 per cent of the service areas failing which the Department of Telecommunications will have the right to withdraw the spectrum awarded to these companies.
