Jio-Airtel battle for home Wi-Fi connections as they aim for higher Arpu
The mobile Arpu for Airtel stood at Rs 200 at the end of the first quarter of FY24. On the other hand, Airtels's Arpu for home services stood at Rs 608
 "Jio-Airtel battle for home Wi-Fi connections as they aim for higher Arpu")
India's biggest telecom companies, Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel are fighting tooth and nail as both companies aim for a higher average revenue per user (Arpu) through their bundled services, according to The Economic Times (ET). Arpu acts as a significant indicator of earnings. With the telecom sector in the country focusing on 5G monetisation, the fixed wireless access (FWA) service and content proposition is the latest bone of contention for the two companies, the newspaper cited experts as saying.
The newspaper cited financial services company BNP Paribas as saying, "Jio and Airtel have extensively invested in 5G networks, raising their network capacity and reach. Now, they are looking to monetise the same by offering 5G-based wireless broadband service (AirFiber)."
As telecom companies make large investments towards their 5G infrastructure but are not raising tariffs, they are exploring different avenues for monetisation in order to increase their Arpu. Aggressive posturing in the home broadband market is a part of these efforts, the report cited analysts as saying. An analyst told ET, "The high consumption and higher Arpu of home services make it a lucrative monetisation area, especially with increased capacity since the 5G launch."
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The mobile Arpu for Airtel stood at Rs 200 at the end of the first quarter of financial year 2023-24 (FY24). On the other hand, Arpu for home services stood at Rs 608, The Economic Times reported.
On the other hand, Jio's overall Arpu for the first quarter of FY24 stood at Rs 180.5, up nearly three per cent from last year. Analysts credit Jio's fibre to the home (FTTH) services for the rise in its Arpu. However, Reliance Jio did not release FTTH Arpu separately.
Industry experts said that the opportunity to grow in this segment is large with just 36 million homes with a wired broadband connection. Moreover, fixed wireless access will help connect areas where fibre cannot reach customers' homes directly. Jio has said that the launch of its FWA will expand the market to 200 million connected homes in the next three years, the ET report said.