'4G Challenge' proves to be a tough one for Bharti Airtel

Bharti Airtel, India's largest telecom service provider, has launched its next-generation wireless broadband services (4G) with 'Airtel 4G Challenge'. The commercial hinges on the premise that Airtel has the fastest network in the country with superior mobile internet speeds. If a consumer finds a faster network, the company has promised to foot that consumer's mobile bills for a lifetime.

It is this tricky promise that is coming to haunt Airtel. Going by the feedback on its #Airtel4G on twitter, it appears that the company's communication was ahead of the curve and built high expectations.

Consumers where Airtel has launched its 4G services, are already claiming compensation as speeds are not uniform across the country.

There are several dark spots (where experience is not superior) across the country, which has impacted data experience. There are areas in metros such as Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, where consumers are only able to access 3G speeds due to want of adequate cell sites or fewer 4G-enabled towers.

When contacted, Srini Gopalan, director (consumer business) at Bharti Airtel, explained: "Owing to reasons such as restrictions on site installations, there can be places where people may face issues around 4G network quality. That said, conversations on social media otherwise suggest customers are thrilled with 4G's exhilarating speeds. We are confident that we provide the best network across, however, there is always scope for improvement that we constantly strive for."

Agnello Dias, co-founder and chairman of Taproot Dentsu, the agency behind the commercial, told Business Standard it has only followed the client's brief. However, in an interview with AgencyFAQs, Dias said the company and creative team chose speed over price, as it was felt that speed would be a differentiator for the launch phase.

Another factor impacting consumer experience is the frequency on which the company is offering 4G service. Airtel's 4G service runs on 2,300 MHz long-term evolution (LTE) spectrum in all nine circles, which is difficult to access while indoors. It had won spectrum in the 1,800 MHz band earlier this year, which is a better frequency for high-speed broadband services. However, it will be a few months before the frequency will become operational.

In a bid to get the early mover advantage, Airtel chose to launch ahead of rival Reliance Jio, but the ramp-up of its network is work in progress. In parts of the cities where the service has been rolled out, towers are not entirely 4G-enabled. However, according to Open Signal, a third-party app that tracks signal quality, Airtel has the most-reliable network across key cities.

Airtel has also focused on boosting infrastructure in areas where it has seen higher data usage. In Mumbai, for instance, the company sees a significantly higher consumption of data north of Andheri (a Mumbai suburb). In the island city of Mumbai (up to Mahim creek), the roll out of 4G infrastructure is still underway. In pockets where the company sees strong data consumption, networks are 4G-ready.

South Mumbai is a dark spot as residents continue to resist mobile towers. In the past six months, 142 of Airtel's cell sites have shut down in Delhi and 128 in Mumbai, the firm said.