5G Launch Date in India: Jio and Airtel 5G Roll out Timeline
The leading network operators are close to launching the next-gen cellular network in India. All the major telecom operators like Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vi are already working on hardware to roll out their 5G services in the country. That means the 5G network is very close now. 5G is the fifth-gen cellular network technology that is designed to improve network connections. In this article, we will discuss and share everything we know about the release of the 5G network in India.
As of now, the Indian government hasn’t officially announced the launch date of 5G yet. But the telecom minister said that the rollout of the 5G network would happen sometime around the month of October. It is a network that can provide even higher data speeds at low latency. So, people are eagerly waiting for this network rollout. Anyway, we can not say until the official news comes.
When will 5G launch in India?
- The 5G services were launched in India on October 1, 2022, at the India Mobile Congress.
PM Narendra Modi officially launched the 5G network at the inauguration of the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2022 on October 1. Airtel and Jio are the first ones to get launched by PM Modi, and initially, the 5G network be available in a few cities. During the event, Ambani, Mittal and Birla spoke about their respective companies’ 5G roadmap.
The government recently completed the 5G spectrum auction and is already in the process of approving and allocating the spectrum to telecom networks that bid. In addition, the three major telecom giants Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vi joined the auction. Apart from these three telecom giants, Adani Data Network also joined them this time. India’s spectrum auction for 5G has been valued at 1.5 lakh crores.
Airtel 5G Launch Date:
- Airtel has started rolling out 5G services from October 1, 2022, in 8 cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Varanasi, and Bangalore.
Airtel said the 5G network will be available in most cities by December 2023. By March 2024, Airtel will be able to cover every town and key rural area with 5G. 5G Roll Out plans for 5000 towns across the country are in place from Bharti Airtel. Reportedly, Airtel will initially roll out 5G in select Indian cities that includes Hyderabad, Jamnagar, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Delhi, Gandhinagar, Kolkata, Gurugram, Lucknow, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, and Pune.
Jio 5G Launch Date:
- Jio 5G services will roll out to 4 cities by Diwali 2022. These cities include Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, and Mumbai.
During Annual General Meeting, Reliance Jio announced its much-awaited 5G services. They said Jio 5G services would be available by Diwali 2022 in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai metro cities. It will be expanding to other cities and towns in phases. They aim to cover entire India in 18 months by December 2023. Jio has completed its 5G coverage in the top 1000 cities across the country.
Note: Initially, 5G Network will likely roll out for a pilot test in select cities across India. After a month or two, telecom operators will roll out their 5G services in more cities in Phases. Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities may expect 5G Services by next year, i.e. 2023.
How Costly will the 5G Network be in India?
Bharti Airtel has already said it will start deploying the 5G network in India by October. But, until now, we can not say the exact pricing of the 5G network in India. The 5G prices in India are expected to be competitive compared to the rest of the world. It might be a little bit costlier than the 4G network in India since it’s faster and better than the previous 4G network.
5G is expected to shore up (ARPUs) Average revenue Per Unit for telcos by at least Rs 50 to the Rs 225-250 range in the next 12-24 months. Anyways, Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw recently said that 5G services in the country are expected to begin in October, and the telecom sector will remain one of the most affordable in the world. That is a piece of excellent news. Lastly, we can expect the 5G Plans to be priced aggressively for quick adoption and gradually increase.
