0 Airtel slashes 3G tariffs by up to 70 percent

Bharti Airtel has slashed its 3G tariff plans, in some cases by up to 70%. The move stands to spark off a price war in the 3G segment, in an industry that is still recovering from the 2G price wars, and gradually increasing 2G voice rates from their all-time lows, with new TRAI proposals forcing matters.

Reports indicate that Vodafone and Idea will also be cutting their 3G rates in the near future, with different rates for each circle, depending on usage and presence. The Indian market of course, is very price sensitive, and reduced prices could really help bolster sales in lagging areas, and help it penetrate at a mass market level.

According to recently released figures, Airtel has roughly 9 million 3G customers, but apparently, only a quarter of that number can be counted as active data subscribers. Airtel has disclosed some of the new rates – its cheapest plan is now Rs. 10 for 30 minutes of high speed browsing. Other plans include Rs. 45 for 150MB, Rs. 100 for 300MB, Rs. 300 for 1GB, and Rs. 1,500 for 10GB. All previous plans will have a higher amount of downloadable data, for the same rates.

In volume-based browsing rates, prepaid and postpaid customers will now pay 3 paise per 10 KB, which counts as a 70% reduction from earlier prices (Rs. 10 for 10KB) . Airtel’s recently introduced Smartbytes mobile plans should also help users get the best value from their plans.

Airtel recently also introduced 4G series, first in Kolkata, then last week, in Bengaluru.

Source: ET