Airtel's new prepaid plans now offer 500MB extra free data after price hike; Read

Indian telecommunication company Airtel said on November 22, 2021, that it would increase its prepaid plan charges from November 26, 2021, by 25%. Airtel says that the hike in prices is necessary to sustain a healthy business model and allow the company to invest more in the upcoming 5G technology. While the price hike disappointed numerous subscribers, Airtel is now giving half a gigabyte of additional data per day with its most popular recharge plans. 

Airtel prepaid plans worth Rs. 265, Rs. 299 and Rs. 719, Rs. 839 will offer subscribers an additional 500MB of data per day. The extra mobile data comes as a rebate to users who now have to pay more for prepaid plans on Airtel. To redeem the additional 500 MB data, Airtel subscribers will have to open the Airtel Thanks application. Besides, the additional or free data will only be available as long as a user's plan lasts - it will not be carried forward. In other words, it will only be available as long as one's main plan is active. 

New Airtel prepaid plans including additional data

The Rs. 265 plan normally offers 1GB of data per day for 28 days, along with unlimited calls and 100 SMS per day. Adding the free data to it, the Rs. 265 plan will effectively offer 1.5 GB of data per day for the same duration. Similarly, the Rs. 299 plan will offer 2GB of data per day (1.5GB regular plus 0.5GB additional data) for 28 days. Further, the Rs. 719 offers 1.5GB per day for 84 days. Upon adding the free 500MB data, the plan will offer 2GB of data for the same tenure. Lastly, the Rs. 839 plan originally offers 2GB per day for 84 days and will offer 2.5GB per day once a user redeems the additional free data. 

Earlier this year, Bharti Airtel Chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal called out for an increase in tariff rate. In its statement, Airtel mentions that the increase in prices will help maintain a healthy business model within the company and enable the company to invest in the upcoming 5G technology. The telco wants an average revenue per user of Rs. 300, which the current revenue per user stands at Rs. 153. However, the Airtel tariff hike might be daunting for the customers, especially those who subscribed to the most affordable packs offered by Airtel. Other companies like Vodafone-Idea also hiked their charges following Airtel. After the hike, it will be interesting to see how customers respond and whether or not they switch to other telcos like Jio. 

(Image: PTI)