Airtel removes ₹299 prepaid plan as telecom premiumisation accelerates
Airtel is raising effective customer spend by withdrawing its ₹299 prepaid pack and making ₹349 its cheapest daily-data plan, while Jio retains ₹299 pricing with Prime tariff protection through September 2027. Brokerages expect an industry-wide tariff increase of about 15% in Q3 FY27.
What happened
Bharti Airtel · Airtel is lifting ARPU by withdrawing lower-priced prepaid plans, while Jio retains Rs 299 pricing and relaunches Prime tariff protection.
Key facts
- India mobile-sector revenue rose 8% YoY in June FY27 to a $33 billion annualised run rate
- Airtel revenue grew 10% YoY; ARPU rose 7%; subscribers increased 3%
- Airtel holds about 40% revenue market share after a 20-bps gain
- Vodafone Idea revenue grew 3% while active subscribers declined 3%; ARPU rose 6%
- Airtel removed its Rs 299 prepaid pack; cheapest daily-data plan is now Rs 349
- Jio Prime costs Rs 300 and locks tariff protection until September 2027
- Nomura expects an industry tariff hike of around 15% in Q3 FY27
- Jefferies forecasts sector revenue CAGR of 12% from FY27-FY29, reaching about $46 billion
Why this matters
The widening entry-price gap versus Jio makes prepaid segmentation, bundled content and targeted upgrade partnerships more strategic for defending share while increasing customer spend.
What to watch
- Airtel's monthly prepaid subscriber additions/losses and sequential ARPU growth after the ₹299 withdrawal.
- Jio's disclosures on Prime-plan eligibility, recharge mix, and whether it extends tariff protection beyond September 2027.
- Evidence of coordinated tariff-hike language from Airtel, Jio, and Vodafone Idea ahead of Q3 FY27.
- Changes in gross additions, porting requests, and active-user ratios in the ₹250-₹400 monthly recharge segment.
- 5G data consumption and upgrade rates, which determine whether higher pack prices are accepted as value improvement rather than pure inflation.
- Vodafone Idea's tariff actions and ability to retain users after competitors increase effective entry pricing.
- Airtel is likely to further prune low-ARPU packs, steer users toward unlimited 5G and larger-data bundles, and increase targeted recharge offers to limit churn.
- Jio may market the ₹299 Prime plan aggressively, bundle it with 5G access or digital services, and selectively protect entry-level pricing while raising prices in higher-usage tiers.
- Vodafone Idea may follow Airtel's pack rationalisation to improve ARPU, but its weaker network perception could make it more vulnerable to prepaid churn.
- Handset retailers and digital recharge platforms may see increased demand for dual-SIM comparisons, longer-validity plans, and lower-cost annual recharge alternatives.