KOLKATA: The last year has played a crucial role in the surge of fixed-line broadband consumption, thanks to work from home and school from home routine followed by millions. After years of tepid growth, the industry got the much-needed push and one of the largest players, Jio Fiber seems to have cashed in on the trend.

Jio Fiber has acquired more than two million new premises over the past year, said the Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani at the company’s 44th annual general meeting on Thursday.

“Across the world, the past 15 months have been challenging for on-the-ground physical work. Jio Fiber, Jio's optical fiber-based, gigabit speed, fixed broadband services has also faced similar challenges. The pace of Optical fiber deployment, building connectivity, and home installations have all been slower than expected because of lockdowns and other restrictions across our country,” said Ambani.

With more than two million new premises over the past year, Jio Fiber now has a cumulative base of three million active home and business users. “JioFiber has become the largest and the fastest-growing fixed broadband operator in India," said the Reliance Industries chairman, “I continue to be confident of a rapid uptake of Jio Fiber services and revenue growth for Jio as India recovers from Covid."

Data consumption on Jio Fiber has grown to more than 3.5 times compared to a year ago. Jio entered the home broadband market in 2016. At the moment, Jio's optical fiber network is physically present outside more than 12 million homes and business premises, with a deep fiber footprint in the top 100 cities.

Ambani added that Jio is uniquely positioned to quickly and seamlessly upgrade to 5G. To develop a 5G ecosystem, he said, the company is working with global partners to develop a range of 5G devices. "Jio is not just working to make India 2G-mukt, but also 5G-yukt," he said.

Jio Fiber recently launched new post-paid plans and announced that it will not charge Jio Fiber postpaid users for installation or a security deposit of the internet setup. It is offering six and twelve months post-paid plans. The plans have been introduced at a starting price of Rs 399 per month. For customer retention, it offers free Netflix, Amazon Prime Video subscription along with others for its high-end plans.