Jio Phone impact : Idea announces to launch its own mobile phones

After Reliance Jio has announced JioPhone a feature phone with 4G support for Indian consumers, Idea Cellular Limited has also confirmed to launch its own set of phones, raising net neutrality concerns associated with Jio handset.

“It [JioPhone] will not allow most of the apps which a customer prefers and the choice of apps may not work because it is forcing consumers to use an individual operator’s apps,” Idea Cellular’s Managing Director Himanshu Kapania said during a conference call.

Mr. Kapania revealed that Aditya Birla Group Company is working with manufacturers to launch a phone. However, the phone would be slightly costlier than the JioPhone, but surely offer a freedom of choice to its customers. “This new handset will give all the choices to a customer, including choosing the operator of his/her choice, popular applications like Google, Facebook or Whatsapp,” he added.

According to report, the Idea phone has been set to cost around Rs 2,500, and without any subsidy being offered. Reliance Jio has claimed the JioPhone to be a “free of cost” device, yet it is asking for a one-time refundable security deposit of Rs 1,500 to avoid any misuse of the product. The deposit will be refunded after 3 years on return of the phone.