Akash Ambani, the managing director of Jio Platforms, stated that the company aims to evolve from a domestic equipment vendor into a global technology provider. Speaking to The Hindu BusinessLine, Ambani outlined the firm's strategy following India's largest public offering, emphasizing a shift toward offering managed services rather than selling hardware licenses. He explained that Jio intends to partner with international operators to deploy its indigenous 5G technology stack, which includes cloud-native radio access networks and business support systems. The company plans to operate as a managed-services partner, helping operators in various markets upgrade their networks and extend broadband access while maintaining selective partnerships where mutual benefit is clear.
Ambani highlighted that Jio's proprietary technology was designed for India's scale, achieving cost and quality benchmarks that he described as globally relevant. The company developed an end-to-end 5G standalone stack and deployed over one million 5G cells within a year of launch. Additionally, Jio has filed 7,220 patent applications across 4G, 5G, and 6G technologies. Ambani noted that the firm's approach involves running its technology under managed-services arrangements, allowing it to address the specific challenges local operators face in rolling out 5G and taking broadband into homes.
Regarding domestic competition, Ambani argued that a healthy digital ecosystem relies on sustained investment and innovation rather than a specific number of operators. He stated that affordability remains central to Jio's identity, citing the development of JioBharat, a 4G phone priced at 799 rupees, to help 2G users transition to data. The company currently distributes 333 million digital service subscriptions monthly, aiming to lift average revenue per user through entertainment, cloud, and AI-enabled offerings rather than solely through tariff hikes. Ambani clarified that Jio's ARPU definition has consistently included only connectivity revenue, excluding digital services.
In the satellite sector, Jio is evaluating the development of a sovereign Low Earth Orbit satellite constellation for India. While acknowledging that telecom connectivity covers 99 percent of the population, Ambani identified maritime, aviation, and remote regions as key use cases for satellite connectivity. The company is building ground station infrastructure and evaluating partnerships with global constellation providers to expedite service delivery. Ambani identified keeping pace with technological changes, ensuring model reliability, and maintaining data security as the primary risks to the company's future plans, with over 12,000 employees focused on digital product development.