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Featured Story T-Mobile: We'll be first with 6G, and no to SpaceX MVNO T-Mobile reports Q3 earnings and says it aims to be first with 6G in the US. It also continues to rule out an MVNO deal with SpaceX's Starlink. Reliance Jio Platforms' mega $3.2 billion Initial Public Offering (IPO), the largest in India's history, has put the spotlight on its next phase of growth while raising questions about its low-cost mobile data model. Since its launch in September 2016, Jio has focused on offering affordable data tariffs to subscribers. Announcing the launch, Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani said the company wanted to "transform India from a highly priced data market to one with the lowest data rates anywhere in the world." Jio offered free 4G data for around six months, pushing its competitors to bring down data tariffs and changing the economics of the Indian telecom market. A decade later, Jio has more than 530 million telecom subscribers and has become India's largest mobile operator. Its public listing marks a new phase for the company, with investors likely to focus on revenue growth, Average Revenue Per User (ARPU), cash generation and returns on investment. But will the IPO lead to a greater focus on tariff increases, or will Jio continue to prioritise affordable data to retain its subscriber base? Jio's ARPU has been on an upward trajectory over the past few years. According to a Kotak Mahindra Bank note, its ARPU rose to INR215.60 ($2.26) in the quarter ending June 2026, up from INR208.80 ($2.18) in the same period a year ago. Its monthly data consumption per user also increased to 43.7 GB from 37 GB. However, Jio's ARPU continues to remain lower than that of its closest competitor, Bharti Airtel. Airtel reported an ARPU of INR264 ($2.76) in the June 2026 quarter, around INR48 ($0.50) higher than Jio's. This is despite Jio's customers consuming more data on average. Over the last few years, Airtel has maintained that mobile ARPU needs to rise above INR300 ($3.14) to ensure a reasonable return on capital. The significant gap between Jio and Airtel ARPU means that there is scope for Jio to raise prices. The question is whether it will rely on higher tariffs or use other ways to increase revenue per customer. Investment firms are already anticipating another round of price rises. Nomura expects a potential 15% industry-wide hike in November-December 2026, while Motilal Oswal expects an increase of a similar magnitude around March 2027, according to media reports. The last major round of tariff increases took place in July 2024, when Jio raised prices across several plans by around 12-25%. Airtel and Vodafone Idea followed with increases of their own. However, increasing tariffs carries the risk of customer churn. Jio lost around 12.74 million subscribers between July and September 2024 following the rate hike. Tariff increases are not the only way Jio can grow its business. Home broadband, enterprise connectivity and cloud services also offer other opportunities to increase revenue. At the company's listing ceremony, Akash Ambani, managing director of Jio Platforms, also outlined plans to expand into new areas. "In our next ten years, we want to democratise every technology that can transform Indian lives: AI, cloud, connected devices, connectivity even from space, and digital services not yet imagined," he said. "Our ambition is a truly digital society, with Jio Platforms at its core: one where connectivity, computing and intelligence work seamlessly together, and every Indian, in every corner and every language, can participate, progress and prosper," Akash Ambani said. Read more about: Asia
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