With TRAI mandate for telecom companies to introduce SMS and calling plans, Reliance Jio has quietly removed two popular prepaid plans from its offerings. The first is the Rs 189 plan, which served as an entry-level option for users to keep their SIM cards active. Prior to the tariff hikes in July 2024, this plan was priced at Rs 155, but it is no longer available.
The second plan, the Rs 479 prepaid option, has also been discontinued following the introduction of voice and SMS-only plans. These prepaid plans offered users the option with a long validity for their SIM cards and at an affordable cost.
Currently, as both customers and the industry are focused on voice and SMS-only plans, the decision came silently to roll back the most popular plans.
What Features Did the Plans Offer?
Jio’s Rs 479 prepaid plan- 84 days of validity, unlimited voice calling, 1000 SMS, and 6GB of data. This is considerably cheaper than other plans. Rs 479 prepaid plan was good for people who don’t need daily data but require calling and long validity.
The Jio Rs 189 plan offered 28 days validity, 2GB data, unlimited voice calls, and 100 SMS daily
Now customers have to opt for higher-priced plans to keep their SIM cards active.
Reason For The Roll Back
Multiple industry reports indicate that Reliance Jio’s decision aligns with the sector’s efforts to boost the average revenue per user (ARPU). However, Jio customers may not be pleased about having to opt for higher-priced plans.
Jio plans, priced at Rs 458, offers 84 days of validity, unlimited voice calling, and 1,000 SMS, While this plan is slightly cheaper than the Rs 479 plan, it lacks the 6GB of data that the more expensive plan provides, which might be useful in certain situations.
The other Jio voice only plan is priced at Rs 1,958 with 365 days validity, unlimited voice calling, and 3,600 SMS.
A key limitation of these new Jio voice-only plans, as highlighted in the report, is that customers cannot combine them with any data vouchers. This means that users who opt for these plans will need to rely on Wi-Fi for internet access and will not receive any data benefits.
