Reliance Jio effect: Airtel to continue with free 30GB of 4G data; takes on Vodafone, Idea, BSNL

In what could be taken as a move to counter attractive data packs offered by all the major telecom operators in India ever since Reliance Jio set the trend in October last year, Bharti Airtel has announced the continuation of its Holiday Surprises offer that was initiated in April this year.

Airtel's Holiday Surprises offer gives free 30GB of 4G data for three months (10GB per month) to its postpaid customers. The country's largest telecom network announced that its postpaid subscribers who joined the network before February 28 would get extra 10GB data at 4G speed per month for three months. It's applicable to different postpaid plans.

Also read: Vodafone's new unlimited 4G data plan comes after Reliance Jio, Idea and BSNL

The same offer has now being extended by another three months, which means Airtel postpaid subscribers can avail the offer after July 1 and enjoy it till September. The telecom service provider also has a few attractive 4G data plans for its prepaid customers, like the Rs 244 plan that offers 1GB of 4G data per day for 70 days and unlimited Airtel-to-Airtel calls (local and STD) with a daily cap of 300 minutes and 1,200 minutes per week (10 paise per minute after crossing the capped limit).

It may be noted that all the major telecom operators like Vodafone, Airtel, BSNL and Aircel Cellular have resorted to offering more data for less money after Reliance Jio offer free unlimited 4G data to its subscribers last year.

Reliance Jio still has Dhan Dhana Dhan plan for its pre-paid users, wherein one can enjoy unlimited data at 4G speed for 84GB with a daily FUP of 1GB (unlimited data at 128kbps post 1GB usage), free voice call to subscribers of all telecom operators (local, STD and roaming) and unlimited SMS (local STD and roaming) for 84 days at Rs 309.

It has also announced a new promotional offer for its prepaid users who are already enrolled in the Jio Prime membership plan. Under the offer, those who purchase the Lyf-branded smartphones namely Earth 1, Earth 2, Water 1, Water 7S, Water 8, Water 10, Water 11, F1, F1S and Wind 4S, can avail 20 per cent extra 4G data and it is valid until March 31, 2018.

Vodafone has also introduced SuperNight pack for its prepaid users, offering unlimited 3G/4G data and download for five hours at Rs 29, that is just about Rs 6 per hour (price may vary from region to region). The offer can be availed by dialling *444*4# or purchase via digital channels or retail touch points. However, one can access the offer only between 1 am to 6 am.

Interestingly, BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited) recently introduced Chaukka 444 aka STV-444 (Special Tariff Voucher-444) data plan, offering unlimited 4G data for three months (90 days) at Rs 444 to prepaid users.

Idea Cellular also launched a Rs 396 plan recently. It offers 70GB data (1GB per day), unlimited calls within the same network (both local and national) and 3,000 minutes of free calls to non-Idea number (300 minutes per day and 1,200 minutes a week), after which users will be charged 30 paise per minute. It is applicable only for select users, so it requires calling the customer service to check for eligibility.