Airtel introduces 3 voice-only prepaid recharges ahead of TRAI deadline
What's the story
Bharti Airtel has launched three new voice-only prepaid recharge plans, just days before the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) deadline. The new offerings, which are now available on the Airtel app for prepaid accounts, come at ₹185 for 28 days, ₹203 for 30 days, and ₹206 with a calendar month validity. Each plan provides unlimited local and national voice calls along with 300 SMSs.
Regulatory requirement
Airtel is 1st operator to roll out voice-only plans
In September, TRAI mandated that operators such as Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vi must offer voice-only plans to customers by October 21.
Airtel is the first company to comply with this directive.
The move comes amid growing consumer demand for affordable recharge options catering specifically to voice calls and messages, especially among feature phone users who don't need data-heavy 4G or 5G recharge options.
User base
Feature phone user base in India
India is home to some 220 million feature phone users. According to CyberMedia Research, the 2G-based feature phone user base in India grew by 5% year-on-year (YoY) in August.
Itel dominated the 2G segment with a 38% share, followed by Lava (30%), and HMD (20%).
The rise of these brands shows that there's still a strong demand for basic phones among Indian consumers.
Pricing strategy
What are voice-only recharges?
The introduction of these new recharge options is in line with TRAI's mandate of plans with 30-day validity or less, matching those that come with 4G or 5G data bundles.
By excluding the data component from these packs, telecom service providers are likely to lower the prices for voice-only plans.
This move could make them more affordable and appealing to a larger user base.