RailTel announced its partnership with a tech company in an effort to monetize its Wi-Fi operation at more than 6,100 train stations around India.

An international consortium led by the Mumbai-based 3i Infotech Ltd. signed a five-year contract with RailTel, a PSU within the Ministry of Railways.

Yellow Inc. and Forensics Intelligence Surveillance and Security Technologies Private Limited (FISST) are the other members of the collaboration.

The deal states that the revenue will be earned by enhancing multimedia infotainment services for rail passengers and monetizing Wi-Fi footfalls in one of the largest integrated public Wi-Fi networks in the world through targeted adverts.

For the three months that ended in September 2022, RailTel reported consolidated income of 440 crore. In contrast, the first quarter of this fiscal year had a 14 percent increase in the consolidated income of 385 crore rupees.

The company's consolidated income for the first half of the year is $825 million, compared to income of $696 million for the same period in the previous financial year.

This is the first multi-year commercial contract India has ever entered into to cooperatively monetize captive users of public Wi-Fi networks.

According to 3i Infotech's estimation, the combined revenue potential from the project is anticipated to be upwards of 250 crore over a five-year period. The revenue will be primarily driven by advertising and supported by content/services-based revenue.

In India, there are currently 6,108 train stations with public Wi-Fi, and each day, more than 1.1 million different people log on to use it. With this cooperative agreement, station Wi-Fi is expected to improve users' digital experiences.

According to the deal, the consortium managed by 3i Infotech would pay RailTel either 14 crore annually or 40 percent of income earned (whichever is higher).