Synopsis: Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea recently raised the prices of their prepaid and postpaid plans, leading to widespread user dissatisfaction. Social media trends like 'JioBoycott' and 'BSNL Ghar Wapsi' have emerged, reflecting the frustration over increased costs and the removal of unlimited 5G from some affordable plans.
Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea have increased the prices of their prepaid and postpaid plans, causing widespread dissatisfaction among users.
Social media trends like 'JioBoycott' and 'BSNL Ghar Wapsi' have emerged, reflecting the growing discontent.
The three major telecom companies in India decided to hike the prices of their data plans simultaneously.
This significant price increase has affected a large portion of India’s user base, leading to frustration over the higher costs.
In response, many users on X (formerly Twitter) have started posting against the tariff hikes.
'JioBoycott' has garnered over 40,000 posts on X, with users expressing their displeasure at the sudden changes.
Additionally, many users are promoting BSNL as a more affordable alternative due to its lower prices compared to the other providers.
Reliance Jio and Airtel have also removed ‘unlimited 5G’ from some of their more affordable plans.
As a result, mobile data users who previously met their daily data needs with these plans are now struggling, despite being on the same, albeit more expensive, plans.
Alongside the ‘JioBoycott’ trend, netizens are also driving the ‘BSNLkigharwapsi’ trend, which shows a growing favorable sentiment for BSNL.
This trend has accumulated over 45,000 posts on X.
The state-owned telecom company offers much more affordable plans compared to Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea.
Users on X appear willing to forgo 5G connectivity to switch to BSNL.
For instance, BSNL’s plan offering 2GB of data per day for 30 days is priced at Rs. 199 (UP West Circle), while Airtel charges Rs. 379 for 2GB of data per day for a month, and Reliance Jio charges Rs. 349 for 28 days.
Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea have increased their plan prices by up to Rs. 600.
The biggest hikes are seen in the annual recharge plans of both Airtel and Jio, with the Rs. 2,999 plan now costing Rs. 3,599.
The companies argue that these increases are necessary to maintain a healthy average revenue per user (ARPU).
The new prices took effect on July 3 for Airtel and Jio, and on July 4 for Vodafone Idea.
Airtel stated that this level of ARPU is needed to fund substantial investments in network technology and spectrum, and to offer a modest return on capital.
In conclusion, the simultaneous price hikes by Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea have sparked significant backlash from users, as reflected in the trending hashtags 'JioBoycott' and 'BSNL Ghar Wapsi' on social media.
The increase in costs, coupled with the removal of unlimited 5G from certain plans, has left many customers frustrated.
As a result, BSNL is gaining favor as a more affordable alternative, despite its lack of 5G connectivity.
The telecom companies justify the hikes as necessary for maintaining revenue and funding network investments, but the widespread user dissatisfaction highlights the impact of these changes on India's massive user base.
