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Mint
3 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Unlicensed band radio: What it means and why it could be a low-cost fix for home broadband woes
Ever wondered how you manage to stream Netflix, attend Zoom calls, scroll through Instagram, and play online games—all at the same time? It's your home Wi-Fi working quietly in the background to keep everything running smoothly. Until now, internet has reached your home mainly through fibre-optic cables or the recently introduced fixed wireless access (FWA), which uses the 5G network. Now, Reliance Jio has introduced a new technology–unlicensed band radio (UBR)–to its backend systems to make home broadband 'faster and more efficient". Mint takes a look at Jio's new technology for home broadband, and whether it will benefit users, and impact other telecom companies. What is UBR tech? At the earnings call with analysts on 18 June, Reliance Jio said it is the first to deploy point-to-multipoint UBR technology for home broadband. The technology works like a radio station, sending internet wirelessly from a central antenna placed on a tower to multiple homes or buildings at the same time. This is called unlicensed as it uses free radio waves or open spectrum, such as the 5 GHz band that is allowed for licence-free use. Jio claims that this proprietary technology of the company has helped it accelerate the pace of monthly home connections to 1 million during the April-June quarter. The company said it has reached 20 million connected premises via home broadband using a combination of fibre, its AirFiber offerings and UBR. Why is Jio taking a different tack for home broadband? Jio is choosing a different route for home broadband because using only 5G and fibre has limits and is costly, it says. 5G networks are already busy with mobile users, and adding home broadband puts extra pressure on them, the company said. There's also limited 5G spectrum (radio space), which makes it hard to scale or customize services for home users. On the other hand, the fibre is prone to physical damage. 'Cost-wise, also, it (UBR) is more economical. Last-mile fibre is more expensive. So, in all those regards, it is going to be much more sustainable," said Anshuman Thakur, senior vice president at Jio Platforms, during the earnings call. According to Thakur, operators worldwide tried using the technology but did not succeed owing to less demand and therefore no scale. However, India is a fairly large market with over 300 million homes that will require broadband services, he said, adding that Jio's target of 100 million home connections seems much more doable. Since the reliance is on unlicensed spectrum, one of the biggest advantages for Jio would be to save on the spectrum usage charges (SUC). What does it mean for consumers? For users, UBR promises good fibre-like speeds of over 1 GB per second, without disruption in service due to cable cuts, according to Jio. It said unlike 5G network, the technology supports very high-end multicast applications. The telecom operator does not see any material difference on the consumer premise equipment (CPE) or boxes through which the internet enters homes or buildings. The device price will be similar to FWA, Jio's Thakur said, adding that the network equipment would be economical for the company. Analysts, however, said there could be some cost savings for the consumers on the CPE. 'This is a user-friendly technology. Currently, the cost of CPE used in FWA is high, but Wi-Fi routers are generally cheaper, and UBR uses those routers," said Satya N. Gupta, former principal advisor at the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). According to Gupta, home broadband services over UBR would improve service quality and reduce costs. What does this mean for competition? Besides Jio, only Bharti Airtel is using both 5G FWA and fibre to connect homes with broadband. Airtel has not yet shared plans to use UBR technology for providing home broadband services. Analysts, however, said it depends on the operators' internal strategies in terms of what is driving maximum cost savings for them, and their spectrum deployment strategies, while ensuring service quality. 'This technology is largely seen as a way to save on costs for the companies," Gupta said, adding that even Airtel may implement the same going forward. 'Jio has scaled FWA well with 6.5 million subscribers and its ability to use Unlicensed spectrum (UBR) should support further FWA subscriber adds with limited impact on its mobile network," said brokerage house Jefferies in a note dated 18 July. Analysts at Jefferies expect Jio's mobile subscribers to reach 517 million and home broadband subscribers to reach 38 million by March 2027. What are the challenges? According to experts, there could be some technical challenges, such as interference and congestion issues, once it scales. 'We cannot control interference in the unlicensed band. This spectrum is going to be common for all, and if you are giving broadband connectivity…and someone or some service is interfering with the channel at that time where the transmission is taking place, the speeds can go down," said Parag Kar, an independent telecom analyst in a video analysis on YouTube. According to Kar, even as Jio will be able to double the capacity by using the Wi-Fi band but if the network gets loaded, the service quality will be affected. Therefore, risks such as maintaining quality of services over the long term, as it will be difficult to guarantee quality service owing to interference challenges, experts said.
Mint
6 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Reliance Jio Q1 results 5G home broadbarnd Arpu growth
Reliance Jio reported a surge in average revenue per user for the April-June quarter, boosted by strong subscriber growth across mobile and home broadband and increased data consumption on the network. Jio Platforms Ltd, which houses Reliance Industries Ltd's telecom and digital services business, reported a 1.2% sequential growth in consolidated net profit to ₹ 7,110 crore for the June quarter. Consolidated revenue from operations rose 3.07% sequentially to ₹ 35,032 crore. On a year-on-year basis, Jio Platforms clocked a 19% revenue growth and a 25% increase in net profit for the quarter ended June. Reliance Jio is India's largest telecom operator by market share and a subsidiary of Jio Platforms, accounting for most of its business. Jio's steady growth comes at a time when telecom operators are looking at ways to monetise 5G services and boost user engagement. Jio continues to eat into the subscriber market share of Vodafone Idea Ltd, which is looking for another financial relief from the government to stay afloat. Reliance Jio's revenue from operations on a standalone basis grew 17% year-on-year and 2.9% quarter-on-quarter to ₹ 30,882 crore, in-line with average estimates of ₹ 30,900 crore by three brokerage houses. Net profit rose 23.2% on-year and 1% sequentially to ₹ 6,711 crore. During the first quarter, Jio's 5G subscribers crossed 200 million and 20 million home broadband connections. 'Jio AirFiber is now the largest FWA (fixed wireless access) service provider in the world, with a base of 7.4 million subscribers,' said Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries. At the end of June, Jio had 213 million 5G subscribers, up from 191 million in the preceding January-March quarter. Monthly average revenue per user (Arpu) rose 1.3% sequentially and 14.9% on-year to ₹ 208.8, helped by tariff hikes, according to the company. Reliance Jio net added 9.9 million subscribers during the June quarter, taking its subscriber base to 498.1 million. In the preceding quarter, the company had 6.1 million subscribers. Monthly user churn was 1.8%. Jio's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (ebitda) rose 24% on-year and 6.6% sequentially to ₹ 18,135 crore in the June quarter. Ebitda margin rose 1.7 percentage points sequentially to 51.8%. According to Jio's investor presentation, the company is also seeing strong traction in its cloud gaming platform Jio Games, its cloud storage platform JioAICloud, and JioPC, its virtual desktop. Jio said it is ready to take its 5G stack with cloud native core network to global markets. Total data traffic rose 24% on-year and 11.9% sequentially to 54.7 billion GB in the June quarter, helped by the growth of the company's fibre broadband and AirFiber users. Monthly average data consumption per user on the company's network was 37 GB, up from 33.6 GB in the preceding three months and 30.3 GB in the corresponding year-ago period.
Economic Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Jio extends its ‘unlimited offer' with free JioHotstar access. What are the key benefits for its users?
Agencies This is an AI-generated image. After a strong response during the cricket season, Jio has extended its 'Unlimited Offer' this quarter, offering users on Rs 299 and above plans a 90-day free JioHotstar subscription in 4K for TV and mobile, along with a 50-day free trial of JioFiber or AirFiber for home use against a refundable deposit of Rs Platforms reported strong financial and operational performance for the quarter ended June 2025, with EBITDA rising 23.9% year-on-year to ₹18,135 crore. Net profit grew 24.8% to ₹7,110 crore. The company added 9.9 million net subscribers during the quarter, supported by gains in the mobility segment and record additions in home broadband connections. Monthly churn stood at 1.8%, while total subscriber base reached 498.1 million as of June 30, 2025. JioTrue5G users crossed the 200-million mark, reaching 212 million by the end of the quarter. Fixed broadband connections touched nearly 20 million, and JioAirFiber became the world's largest fixed wireless access (FWA) service with 7.4 million also launched JioGames Cloud, a cloud-based gaming platform offering access to over 500 titles across devices without dedicated hardware. Average revenue per user (ARPU) rose to ₹208.7, aided by tariff hikes and seasonal factors. Per capita data usage reached 37 GB/month, with total data traffic up 24% year-on-year to 54.7 billion GB. Free JioHotstar Subscription: All eligible Jio prepaid and postpaid users will get a complimentary JioHotstar subscription under the "Jio Home Unlimited Offer 2025". Who Can Avail the Offer – Prepaid Users: Jio prepaid users who recharge with ₹349 or above plans that include at least 1.5 GB data per day are eligible. Who Can Avail the Offer – Postpaid Users: Jio postpaid users with plans starting from ₹349 per month or more (including new customers or those changing their plan) are eligible. Not Eligible: The offer is not applicable to users of JioBharat, JioPhone, or voice-only value plans. Other Eligibility Conditions: To avail the offer, users must be active Jio prepaid or postpaid subscribers and enrolled in the Jio Prime membership. Offer Validity: The offer is available for a limited time starting from July 1, 2025. The end date will be decided by Jio. Offer Benefits: The benefits will be available during the validity period of the eligible recharge or postpaid plan. Free JioHotstar Access: Jio prepaid and postpaid users on eligible plans can get up to 3 months of complimentary JioHotstar (JHS) subscription in 4K. Eligibility – Prepaid Users: Recharge with ₹349 or above (plans with 1.5 GB/day or more). Recharge within 48 hours of expiry to continue benefits for the 2nd and 3rd months. Prepaid Benefits: Recharge valid for 28–30 days: 1 month JHS. Recharge valid for 28–56 days: 2 months JHS (recharge again within 48 hrs for 3rd). Recharge valid beyond 56 days: 3 months JHS. Eligibility – Postpaid Users: Active postpaid plan of ₹349/month or higher. Valid for new activations or plan changes during the offer period. Eligible postpaid users get full 3-month JHS subscription. Not Eligible: JioBharat, JioPhone, and voice-only value plans. Jio Home WiFi Offer 50-Day Free Home Internet Trial : Eligible Jio prepaid/postpaid users get a free trial of JioFiber or JioAirFiber for 50 days. : Eligible Jio prepaid/postpaid users get a free trial of or for 50 days. Eligibility – Prepaid : New users recharging with ₹349. Existing users recharging with ₹349+ plans (1.5 GB/day or more). ₹100 data add-on recharge is also eligible. : Eligibility – Postpaid : Active monthly plan of ₹349 or above. ₹100 data add-on recharge also qualifies. : Upfront Payment : ₹500 refundable deposit, returned as five ₹100 vouchers after 6 months (one voucher redeemable at a time). : ₹500 refundable deposit, returned as five ₹100 vouchers after 6 months (one voucher redeemable at a time). How to Avail : Express interest via MyJio app or . Offer activation is on a first-come, first-served basis and subject to technical feasibility. : Post Offer : After 50 days, users will be auto-migrated to the ₹599 JioFiber/JioAirFiber postpaid plan. :
Time of India
06-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
MediaTek to support mmWave spectrum band, 6G in India
NEW DELHI: Taiwanese wireless chipset provider MediaTek said that it would support millimeter wave or mmWave frequency bands in India that could also foster the country's next generation (6G) ambition. "MediaTek invests very heavily in cellular. That's our biggest segment. We believe in millimeter wave bands. From a cellular perspective, you need millimeter wave bands because we're all going to run out of frequencies and also 6G is also going to have even higher frequencies," Thomas Ho, marketing director, MediaTek said. Rick Tsai-headed fabless semiconductor company said that India's Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel have millimeter wave airwaves in the 26 GHz band, and both incumbent telecom carriers are in the planning stage. "We know that Jio and Airtel have this frequency (26 GHz) band. And also the Indian government has requested to have some usage of this frequency band. So they are all under the planning to develop a product using this frequency band," the executive said. In the 2022 spectrum sale, Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Jio and Sunil Mittal-driven Bharti Airtel acquired airwaves in the 26 GHz band. However, both service providers had to roll out 5G services based on mmWave range to meet minimum rollout norms. Last month, Jio sought approval from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to use mmWave spectrum for Wi-Fi technology. "India is a top-ranking Wi-Fi region, supporting diverse needs and driving innovation with Jio." The multinational said that it holds as much as 60% of the indoor Wi-Fi 6 router market, enhancing user experience with Jio and Airtel's Air Fiber rollout. MediaTek's Ho further said that MediaTek is a "big believer in millimeter wave range" and it did not take off not just India but worldwide due to various factors but the main reason is the cost versus benefit. "But, we are releasing, and we did release phones that support millimeter wave bands." In 2022, MediaTek unveiled its first mmWave 5G chipset, Dimensity 1050 system-on-chip (SoC) to power the next generation of 5G smartphones. "We also have 5G Continuous Delivery (CD) solutions that support millimeter wave, just like our competitor," he said, adding that the use of spectrum is a matter of economics, and the fabless chipset multinational said that it would support the Indian telcos. "The future, like 6G, is kind of partly built upon that." Early this year, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), in a bid to open up more mmWave frequencies, had recommended the 37-37.5 GHz and 37.5-40 GHz spectrum bands for auction. The mmWave bands above 24 gigahertz (GHz) are considered as a valuable resource catering to densely populated urban areas. Airwaves in the high band offer an opportunity for service operators to offer low latency and high capacity. MediaTek claims to be the largest Wi-Fi supplier worldwide with over 2 billion devices shipped every year, and holds a leadership position in India's broadband market.
Business Wire
28-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
GTA Launches 'Air Fiber' Service, Powered by Tarana ngFWA, in Guam
TAMUNING, Guam & MILPITAS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GTA, Guam's longest-serving telecom provider, and Tarana, creator of next-generation fixed wireless access (ngFWA) broadband technology, today announced a new network that is expanding high-speed internet access on the island. After just three months of deployment, GTA passed more than 30,000 homes and businesses and already has hundreds of subscribers on the service. The first of its kind, Tarana's ngFWA platform is changing the landscape of the broadband industry by combining fiber-class performance with the deployment ease of wireless technology. More than 250 operators in 24 countries are deploying ngFWA to deliver better broadband more efficiently. A seasoned internet service provider, GTA has ample experience with legacy fixed wireless and other broadband solutions — none of which could deliver the speeds, reliability, or agility of Tarana technology at scale. Now GTA is offering up to 500 Mbps to many Guam residents that previously only had access to 25 Mbps service through copper networks. 'The feedback from customers on our Air Fiber service has been great,' said Andrew Gayle, GTA's Chief Operating Officer. 'It's been the perfect solution for areas that don't have GTA Fiber yet, offering fast speeds and a reliable connection. The GTA team recently installed Tarana technology at the Guam Animals in Need (GAIN) shelter, equipping the facility with hundreds of Mbps to operate their non-profit organization. Alison Hadley, GAIN's Executive Director, shared, 'Partnering with GTA — who donates their Air Fiber service to us — has been a game-changer for GAIN. It helps us stay connected, work faster, and support more people when they need us most. We're so grateful for this kind of partnership which amplifies our impact and demonstrates the power of collaboration in driving meaningful change.' Basil Alwan, Tarana's CEO, added, 'GTA's work to close the digital divide in Guam is critical to their community and we are very proud to support their efforts. We look forward to seeing more progress on the island.' About GTA For over 70 years, GTA has been Guam's trusted provider of technology and connection. We provide solutions for every person and business with a team that truly cares. Supported by our next-generation fiber network, we provide wireless, high-speed internet, digital TV, and local and long-distance voice services that keep Guam connected to the world. GTA employees are committed to providing the highest level of service to our customers and to supporting our community. Learn more at About Tarana Tarana's mission is to accelerate the deployment of fast, affordable internet access around the world. Through a decade of R&D and over $400M of investment, the Tarana team has created a unique next generation fixed wireless access (ngFWA) technology instantiated in its first commercial platform, Gigabit 1 (G1). It delivers a game-changing advance in broadband economics in both mainstream and underserved markets, using either licensed or unlicensed spectrum. G1 started production in mid-2021 and has since been embraced by more than 250 service providers in 24 countries. Tarana is headquartered in Milpitas, California, with additional research and development in Pune, India. Learn more at
