Aircel India is about to bring the free basic Internet across the country within a year as a part of the telecom operator strategy to push the mobile internet usage.
Since from the long time, Aircel subscribers were expecting the free internet access. Telecom Company is providing internet service with a download speed of 64 KB per second under its Free Basic Internet Program.
Anupam Vasudev, Aircel Chief Marketing Officer said, "Our intent is that everybody should have access to the Internet and it should not be limited to only elites. We have started offering free basic Internet service in Tamil Nadu and it should be available across India in a year. At present, data contributes around 14 per cent in our total revenue, which we expect to take it to around 30 per cent in three years. With the price of 3G handset coming down below Rs. 3,000, people are moving to mobile for entertainment from TV and they will need data for it."
"We are offering 100 minutes talk time and 3 GB of 3G and 2G data, depending on the location of subscriber, which is very less than price available through other channels," Vasudev said.
Telecom Industry is planning to increase its versatility by strengthening its 3G network, by targeting to have around 20,000 mobile sites by the end of next year. To enhance their data usage and for attracting the customers, the company has made its partnership with Microsoft, Samsung, Gionee, Micromax, Lava, Karbonn and Intex to offer their devices some amount of free data at discounted price.
As according to its new strategy, the company has announced the sale of two recharge vouchers of Rs. 402 and Rs.602 through Snapdeal, which will offer 3G and 2G mobile internet services at discounted prices compared with the options available through retail channels.
Sunil Kuttam, Aircel Vice President for Data, Devices and Online revealed that, "For new customers it is free for three months. After that if they continue to be active, customers by recharging with an amount of at least Rs 150 in a month, the free basic Internet will be complimentary for them.”
He also said that, “We are also partnering Snapdeal, Amazon and Flipkart to sell paper recharge. These recharges be sold under cash on delivery model for those customers who are skeptical of sharing their debit or credit card details online."
Aircel, the telecom operator has also collaborated with Ingram, a mobile insurance provider company. With this collaboration, any customer who buys a new smartphone through Aircel will be able to select from two variants of this product within seven days of the purchase for getting coverage limited to Accidental and Liquid Damage only.
