Jio users, we have news. You may soon need more than your standard Rs. 399 recharge to access all company services. Reliance Jio announced today it will charge users 6 paise per minute for calls to other telecom networks.
The new rule is simple. Calling someone using an Airtel or Vodafone SIM will cost you 6 paise per minute. This tariff excludes Jio-to-Jio calls, incoming calls, and Jio-to-landline calls. VoIP calls like WhatsApp or FaceTime remain unaffected.
Why the Change?
Many may not know that telecom operators must pay rivals when their users call them. For example, Jio pays Vodafone when a Jio user calls a friend with a Vodafone number. This is called Interconnect Usage Charge (IUC), which Jio had been subsidizing for its customers.
However, Reliance Jio announced it will no longer subsidize the IUC charge due to TRAI regulations, despite having paid over 13,000 crores in the past two years.
In 2017, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) decided to eliminate IUC charges, effective January 2020. Jio trusted TRAI’s decision and hasn’t charged its customers for IUC since then. However, TRAI is considering extending the termination, prompting Jio to seek recovery of some charges to compensate its competitors until IUC is permanently abolished.
Jio reassures its 35 crore customers in an official blog post that the 6 paise per minute charge on outgoing off-net mobile calls will continue until TRAI abolishes IUC, as per current regulations. TRAI has already set IUC charges at 6 paise a minute, which is what Jio will charge moving forward.
Details of New Calling Plans
Having clarified the concept of IUC and Jio’s shift to charging users to offset losses, let’s explore the top-up vouchers it offers. Below is a list of these plans along with the allocated IUC minutes and data upon recharging your Jio number:
| Top-up Voucher | IUC Minutes | Free Data |
|---|---|---|
| Rs. 10 | 124 | 1GB |
| Rs. 20 | 249 | 2GB |
| Rs. 50 | 656 | 5GB |
| Rs. 100 | 1362 | 10GB |
After October 10th, recharging your Jio number will require an additional top-up for IUC calling minutes. Only after completing this recharge can Reliance Jio users make outgoing calls to non-Jio telecom operators. To avoid this top-up voucher, you can either call the user on their Jio number or use WhatsApp for calling.
Pritam Chopra is a seasoned IT professional and a passionate blogger hailing from the dynamic realm of technology. With an insatiable curiosity for all things tech-related, Pritam has dedicated himself to exploring and unraveling the intricacies of the digital world.
