Rs 16 GB A Month For Rs 160 A Tragedy: Airtel Chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal

Bharti Airtel chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal on Monday (August 24) has hinted at an increase in mobile services prices in the next six months, saying that data at low rates is not sustainable for the telecom industry.

Mittal said 16 GB data consumption a month for Rs 160 is a tragedy.

“You either consume 1.6 GB of capacity per month either at this price point or you may prepare to pay a lot more. We are not wanting USD 50-60 like the US or Europe but certainly USD 2 for 16 GB a month is not sustainable,” Mittal said at an event, as quoted by a news agenc y.

This could mean that prices of 1 GB data will come for Rs 100, instead of Rs 10 now.

Currently, Airtel offers 1 GB per day for 24 days at Rs 199 per month.

Mittal also said that the average revenue per user (ARPU) is expected to cross Rs 200 in six months on digital content consumption. ARPU is the measure of revenue generated per user for a telco. Airtel reported an increase in the ARPU to Rs 157 in the first quarter ended June 30, 2020. The rise in ARPU came after the tariff hike by Bharti Airtel in December 2019.

Mittal said that while telecom operators have served the nation during the difficult times, the industry needs to invest in 5G, more optical fibres, submarine cables etc.

Here are Airtel Recharge plans for August 2020: