Shares of telecom majors Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea Ltd (VIL) were under pressure on Wednesday after Reliance Jio announced a range of postpaid plans with several benefits, to take on both Airtel and Vodafone Idea in the postpaid segment.
Around 1.50 pm, shares of Bharti Airtel on the BSE were trading at Rs 433.50, lower by Rs 37.55 or 7.97% from its previous close. It fell further closing 8.16% down to Rs 432.50.
Vodafone Idea shares were trading at Rs 9.32, lower by 93 paise or 9.07% from its previous close. The stock closed 10.73% down at Rs 9 15.
With its competitive pricing in the prepaid segment, Jio has already eroded the subscriber base of both the incumbent players over the past four years.
The latest offering under 'JioPostpaid Plus' announced on Tuesday, with free subscription to Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney+ Hotstar and family plan for the entire family at Rs 250 per connection along with data rollover up to 500 GB and Wifi-Calling in India and abroad among others, is likely to start a tariff war in the postpaid segment.
The monthly tariff charges offered under 'JioPostpaid Plus' are Rs 399, Rs 599, Rs 799, Rs 999 and Rs 1,499 and all the packs come with individual offers and data limit according to the users' requirement.
Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea offers four plans under its RedX line starting at Rs 399 per month, and three family plans. Airtel, on the other hand, offers four plans starting at Rs 499, going up to Rs 1,599 a month. Airtel also offers ‘One Airtel' postpaid plans that come with multiple connections and DTH services under one bill starting at Rs 1,499.
Vi’s top tier tariff plan comes at Rs 1,099 per month with unlimited data, one year of Netflix subscription worth Rs 5,988 per year, One year of Amazon Prime subscription, access to international & domestic airport lounges at no extra cost four times a year (including 1 International), and other benefits.