BSNL working with Micromax, Lava to launch low-cost phones, data packs

State owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) network in a bid to counter Reliance Jio has paired with Indian smartphone manufacturers to build low-cost devices which will be paired with voice and data pack bundle to provide more value. According to PTI report this tie-up, BSNL has tied-up with Micromax Informatics and Lava International to build these handsets.

"BSNL has tied up with Micromax and Lava to provide instruments to BSNL customers at low cost. We are coming out with bundled offers on the handsets manufactured by Micromax and Lava with BSNL SIMs...the cost details are being worked out," BSNL's Hyderabad Telecom District (HTD) Principal General Manager K Ramchand told PTI reporters in Hyderabad.

According to him, six rural exchanges are commissioned with Wi-Fi in Hyderabad Telecom District and another 112 rural exchanges will be covered by December end this year.

The launch of the Rs 429 plan led the path to more subscribers in Andhra and Telangana regions. According this new plan from BSNL, the user gets 1GB of data per day for a period of 90 days.

A smaller recharge worth Rs 249 also offers 1GB per day but at a validity of 28 days. As a part of the offer, the company is also offering unlimited BSNL to BSNL calls.

Though BSNL is still operating on 2G and 3G spectrums, the state-owned company is planning to soon launch its 4G services with VoLTE. Also, BSNL is working on 5G speeds to prepare for future competition in the growing segment.

Most telecom companies are shifting to a new strategy to acquire more users. After Reliance Jio launched the JioPhone in July this year, other telecom brands are also preparing their arsenal with ultra-cheap smartphones or feature phones that can operate on 4G networks. 

Airtel and Idea-Vodafone are also planning to launch their versions of cheap smartphones, which might also run Android applications, unlike Reliance JioPhone.