Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. (RJIL) said it had acquired the right to use spectrum in 14 circles across India in the 1800 MHz band and had plans to use this spectrum to address the expected surge in demand for digital services. RJIL said it would provide seamless 4G services through an integrated ecosystem. Through this acquisition, RJIL’s total equivalent spectrum footprint had increased from 440 MHz to 597.6 MHz (including uplink and downlink), it said.
“With this acquisition, Reliance Jio will be the holder of the largest quantum of liberalised spectrum and with the longest residual spectrum life. Reliance Jio’s seamless 4G services using FDD-LTE on 1800 MHz and TDD-LTE on 2300 MHz through an integrated ecosystem, aims to provide unparalleled high quality access to innovative and empowering digital content, applications and services,” Mukesh D. Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director, Reliance Industries, said in a statement.
Cost to RJIL for the right to use this technology agnostic spectrum for 20 years is Rs.11,054 crore. RJIL plans to opt to make an upfront payment of 33 per cent with the balance payable in 10 equal annual instalments after a two-year moratorium.
