RJio set to usher in digital life in 2017

By Nandita Singh

MUMBAI: The vision of end-to-end ‘always on’ 4G ecosystem has captured the attention of masses. Subscriber enrollment numbers at RJio tell a story. The average rate of adding 6 lakh subscribers per day is a sign of things to come.

Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio Infocomm (RJio) in less than three months of launch crossed 50-million user mark in November 2016. With a stated goal of 100 million by March 2017, the company is already halfway the mark.

Jio had rolled out eKYC across 2 lakh outlets in India, activating SIMs in under 5 minutes with more than 95% of its activations executed paperless via eKYC. Now, the company is in the process of doubling the network to 4 lakh digitally enabled outlets by March 2017. More recently, RJio introduced home delivery of SIMs to enterprise and high-end customers with an under-5 minute activation through eKYC. This home delivery service is being progressively launched across India through MyJio application and will be available in top 100 cities before we enter the Year 2017, which may well be the ‘Year of RJio’.

Now that RJio has acquired scale of 50 million plus subscribers, the company is optimizing its network. Eighty percent of Jio subscribers use up to 1 GB of data daily, while the remaining 20% are disproportionately high data users, therefore Jio has limited the high-speed-data use to 1 GB per day, per user, following which the speed will be reduced to 128 kbps. This step has been taken to ensure that all the Jio users get superior data experience. Attractive tariff options have been offered for subscribers who still want to consume additional data beyond 1 GB per day at regular speed as part of ‘Jio New Year Offer’ available from December 4.

At the Reliance corporate office in Mumbai, the RJio ‘customer experience center’ is functional for a year now and open to media and customers. The demo zones at the center emphasize that RJio is not just another telco but an enabler of digital life with use cases across Internet of Things (IoT) led entertainment, transportation, home automation, healthcare and education. And at the heart of the services on showcase, is RJio 4G network – enabling the platform, content and services. Among its many interesting service offerings including productivity boosting rich communication offering for enterprises, there are two game changing offerings that will see light in 2017.

Jio Digital Home

While much has been talked about the RJio entertainment ‘suite of apps’ that includes cinema, music, and television content all available for streaming-on-demand and part of the welcome offer which has recently been extended until March 2017, the real game changer will be its ‘digital home services’ which is running pilots now.

The RJio ‘digital home services’ will be delivered on high-speed optical-fibre network. Jio Fibre to the Home (FTTx) will have a throughput of 1 Gbps, making it at least 10 times faster than current fast broadband offerings. The service will enable personalized multi-screen entertainment and seamless communication through various devices and a web of connected home automation and security solutions. In terms of usability, it goes beyond just connecting all appliances. The service is infused with real-life use cases based on challenges of modern, on-the-go life and allows for managing and monitoring your home from anywhere in the world.

For families split across geographies the service can create an everyday sense of presence by connecting all communication devices through a router allowing for video conferencing or broadcasting live pictures of important not to be missed special family occasions via JioCloud.

Jio CarConnect

The JioCarConnect app, a part of the Jio ecosystem, interprets the on-board diagnostics (OBD) of your car, which is just a small white box plugged into the OBD port of your car. All cars manufactured after 2013 have an OBD port used to diagnose issues with the machine, if any, which shows not only the existence of an issue but also its location. So, if your radiator is malfunctioning, your OBD port will signal it there. Already, cars’ existing OBD ports help capture information about the battery, fuel, brake oil, mileage, etc., Jio intends to take its offering of the white box and app to the market soon, making it available for end consumers, at affordable price points.

Jio solution also equips the car with a Wi-Fi hotspot, allowing as many as 10 devices to connect to high-speed internet promising a smooth connected life, irrespective of where you are.