Airtel 5G services coming by September end

Bharti Airtel Ltd is all set to launch its 5G services this month and will cover urban India by 2023-end, Gopal Vittal, the chief executive of the second largest telecom operator, said in an email communication Wednesday.

“Within a few weeks, we will commence the launch of our next-generation technology, Airtel 5G. We expect to launch 5G services within a month. By December, we should have coverage in key metros. After that, we will expand rapidly to cover the entire country. We expect to cover urban India by the end of 2023,” he said.

Last month, Vittal had told analysts that Airtel will roll out 5G services in 5000 towns and cities by March 2024. The telco will offer differential services to customers seeking superior or consistent services through network slicing, and offer up to 30 times more speed than 4G.

“Airtel 5G will also enable differential quality for special requirements, called network slicing. So, if you are a gamer, and want flawless experience, we will be able to slice the network for you,” Vittal added.

Customers will know about the availability of 5G in their areas, and whether their existing smartphones are compatible with 5G, by accessing the upgraded Airtel Thanks App, which will go live as soon as 5G services are rolled out.

Vittal also asked customers to ensure whether the handset they are planning to upgrade to is 5G-compatible or not as most smartphones launched more than a year ago did not have a 5G chipset. Airtel SIMs are 5G-enabled, so customers would have the choice to pick 5G in addition to 4G LTE.

However, Vittal did not say anything on the tariff plans for 5G. People in the know, seeking anonymity, said 5G plans will be finalised soon.

In August, Vittal said Airtel was yet to decide on pricing of 5G tariff plans adding that globally 5G had not led to incremental average revenue per unit (ARPU) growth. He had also said that tariffs of existing plans should be raised.

Akhil Gupta, vice-chairman, Bharti Enterprises told Mint last month that Airtel may not charge a premium for 5G services but may offer it to high-tariff plan subscribers. “I feel 5G penetration will increase so quickly that it will be like any other offering. Anybody who has a 5G handset will get 5G. They will consume more and automatically go to higher tariff plans. This would result in higher revenues,” Gupta had said. “Don’t think there will be something like pure premium 5G. At best we could start giving 5G on slightly higher plan, but let the operating people decide what they want to do.” Livemint