According to JP Morgan analysts, Reliance's Jio's announcement of less expensive postpaid plans with unlimited 5G has put rival Bharti Airtel on the back foot in the Indian market and may postpone recovery in its key profit indicator.

Reliance Industries' telecom division, Jio, introduced new postpaid plans last week starting at 399 rupees ($4.85) that featured over-the-top (OTT) bundles, pushing Bharti Airtel to introduce comparable offerings.

According to the analysts, Bharti's new family plans might result in ARPU declines of 100–200 rupees per subscriber, and any further price matching with Jio could result in additional ARPU declines of 50–100 rupees per customer.

The operators' pricing power would be reduced due to intense competition for 5G subscribers, and they further stated that they would not be able to monetize 5G by charging a premium.

Analysts maintained their under weight rating on Bharti Airtel, stating that the company's ARPU increase was in jeopardy and would even decline during the course of 2024–2025 as a result of the 5G price wars.

Government bond yields finished little altered, despite the Indian rupee having its best day in three weeks on speculation of a Fed pause. When JPMorgan stated that Reliance Jio's new 5G ambitions could affect the company's primary growth statistic, Bharti Airtel shares may be flying under the radar at the moment.

By the end of 2023, the Reliance Telecom Company plans to roll out its 5G network throughout the entire country of India. The Jio 5G Service is now being tested in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Varanasi.

Government bond yields finished little altered, despite the Indian rupee having its best day in three weeks on speculation of a Fed pause. When JPMorgan stated that Reliance Jio's new 5G ambitions could affect the company's primary growth statistic, Bharti Airtel shares may be flying under the radar at the moment.

By the end of 2023, the Reliance Telecom Company plans to roll out its 5G network throughout the entire country of India. The Jio 5G Service is now being tested in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Varanasi.

"We were surprised to see Bharti turn defensive with counter-plans," JP Morgan analysts said in a client note, adding that unlimited 5G data consumption would also delay any kind of 5G monetization, pressure the expansion of average revenue per user (ARPU) and delay 4G prepaid tariff increases.