Now Reading: Airtel withdraws Rs 299 prepaid plan, raises entry price 16%
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Airtel withdraws Rs 299 prepaid plan, raises entry price 16%
Airtel has discontinued several prepaid recharge plans, including its popular Rs 299 unlimited 28-day pack, according to its website listing reported by The Times of India. Users must now choose the Rs…
The Story in Brief
Airtel has discontinued several prepaid recharge plans, including its popular Rs 299 unlimited 28-day pack, according to its website listing reported by The Times of India. Users must now choose the Rs 349 plan for the same 1.5GB daily data benefit, a price increase of about 16%. Airtel has also withdrawn selected plans priced at Rs 319, Rs 579, Rs 619, Rs 649 and Rs 799, while repricing the Rs 859 plan to Rs 899. The Rs 199 and Rs 219 entry-level packs remain available.
The move could lift Airtel’s average revenue per user by 3% to 4%, analysts said. JM Financial described the changes as plan modifications aimed at moving customers towards higher-value packs, rather than a broad tariff increase. Airtel reported a 37.3% rise in June-quarter profit to Rs 8,167 crore, while revenue increased 18.3% to Rs 58,539 crore.
The Indian Opinion
Claims that Airtel has imposed a blanket tariff hike overstate the change, since some low-priced packs remain and several withdrawn plans had limited adoption. But calling it mere simplification also understates the effect on Rs 299 users, who face a 16% jump for the same benefits. The clearest test will be whether rival operators follow Airtel and whether its reported ARPU rises in the coming quarters.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
