After Airtel announced its Jio-esque unlimited voice & data combo plan, Idea Cellular too came up with similar unlimited voice and data combo plans.
As we were expecting, the two unlimited voice and data combo plans announced by Idea are similar to Airtel unlimited voice and data combo plans.
Idea Cellular Unlimited Calling Plans
The entry-level Rs. 148 plan will offer Idea subscribers unlimited voice calls to Idea mobiles (local and STD) along with 50 MB data benefit. Subscribers having 4G handsets will get 300 MB 4G data in addition to the voice benefits.
“Priced around Rs. 148 and Rs. 348, these packs provide the customers with unlimited voice calls to anywhere in India, along with data benefits,” said Idea Cellular in a statement.
If Rs. 148 plan is not of much use to you since most of your contacts might not be on Idea network, then you should opt for Rs. 348 plan which offers truly unlimited voice calls to any network in India. The subscribers of this plan will get 50 MB data, while those on 4G phones will get 1 GB 4G data along with voice benefits.
Both these plans come with a validity of 28 days from the date of recharge and are available to all Idea subscribers pan-India.
Airtel offers same voice and data benefits at similar subscription cost of Rs. 146 and Rs. 349.
In case you are willing to opt for any of these Idea plans, then you should note that the price of these plans might vary slightly across different telecom circles.
Talking about the competition, BSNL is also considering to launch similar truly unlimited voice calling (to any network) plan at Rs. 149, along with 300 MB 3G data, and free incoming facility during roaming.
Jio has come up with disruptive strategy and we are ready to match whatever tariff is being offered by our competitors,” Shrivastava added.
Reliance Communications is also offering similar truly unlimited voice and data combo packs, while Aircel is offering unlimited Aircel-Aircel voice along with 15,000 local/STD seconds per month for the first 3 months, and 500 MB 2G data.
With all being said, it is worth noting that no telecom operator has been able to match Jio’s entry-level Rs. 149 tariff plan that offer unlimited voice calls to any network in India, 300 MB 4G data with unlimited night usage, 0.7 GB Wi-Fi data, free incoming and outgoing on roaming, and 100 Local/National SMS.
Well, this is just the beginning and we might see the telecom operators revising their current tariff plans to match Jio’s offering. On the other hand, Jio can also revise its tariff plans for more profitability. This is highly unlikely, but quite possible.
Jio offers truly unlimited voice at Rs. 149 while Airtel, and Idea (Vodafone might do the same) offer similar benefits at Rs. 349 approx. although with 700 MB more 4G data. This difference of Rs. 200 in tariff plans offering similar benefits will get filled in future, and when it does the mobile subscribers will be poised for choice.
