Vodafone Idea (Vi) is in talks with major global satellite communication firms, including Elon Musk’s Starlink and Amazon Kuiper. These potential partnerships come as Vi accelerates its 5G deployment to curb subscriber losses to larger competitors, according to a report .
Vi’s Chief Technology Officer, Jagbir Singh, acknowledged recent alliances between Starlink and telecom giants Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio. He confirmed that Vi is in talks with industry partners and will disclose updates at an appropriate time.
Vi’s 5G rollout strategy
Unlike its rivals, Vi is not aiming for an aggressive nationwide 5G expansion. Instead, it is prioritising key cities to strengthen its network and retain users. The report quoted Singh as saying that the company is focusing on strategic deployments rather than matching the rapid expansion efforts of Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel.
While Airtel and Jio have already completed their nationwide 5G rollouts, Vi’s relatively smaller 4G coverage has led to significant subscriber migration to these competitors. To attract customers, Vi has introduced competitive 5G pricing, starting at Rs 299, which undercuts Airtel’s Rs 379 plan and Jio’s Rs 349 offer.
Future expansion plans
Vi has committed Rs 50,000-55,000 crore in capital expenditure over the next three years to expand its network. Despite delays in securing bank funding, Singh assured that this would not impede infrastructure investments or vendor agreements, The Economic Times mentioned.
