BSNL to increase data capacity by up to two fold
8 years ago Admin 0
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is gearing up to compete with private players now and plans to increase its mobile broadband capacity by up to two-fold to 600 terabytes in a month in a bid to stay relevant in the country and to better compete with private players that are already offering 4G services.
“We are seeing an enormous increase in usage of mobile data on our network. We will be increasing our data network capacity to deliver high-speed 3G and other services. In South, we will double the capacity to 600 TB and in other zones, it will be up to 450 TB by November,” BSNL Chairman and MD Anupam Shrivastava told.
The plan offers unlimited 3G access without any speed restriction up to 30 days. Shrivastava said the recently launched unlimited 3G scheme for Rs 1,099 is one of the key reasons for an increase in demand for mobile data on BSNL network.
“In 2012, data usage on BSNL network was around 80 TB. After recent unlimited 3G Internet scheme, we have seen a sudden jump in data usage. In July it was around 279 TB which has now gone up to 353 TB,” Shrivastava said.
The average download under this plan is around 2.2 GB per user which means 66 GB per user in a month. As on the other hand, private operators download data limit is 7 to 11 GB at a price of Rs. 1,100.
As Reliance Jio is offering unlimited 4G data, voice calls and SMS free till Dec. 31st. Starting Jan 1st these services will be offered at a low tariff starting at just Rs. 19 but the ‘unlimited’ 4G usage will remain valid during night hours.
Shrivastava said that BSNL is ready to compete with any telecom operator in the market.
“…we will match any tariff in the market. It will be as competitive as any of the players in the market. We are already offering 300 GB of data usage for Rs 249 per month on fixed broadband connection. It is valid for six months and no other operator has been able to match it,” Shrivastava said.
As the company is already offering 300 GB of data at a price of Rs. 249 per month to fixed broadband subscribers and is planning to launch lifetime free voice calling to mobile users starting from Jan. 17 along with plans that will be cheaper than what Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio. The move is aimed at quickly expanding the subscriber base across India, except Mumbai and Delhi, where MTNL provides services.
