MUMBAI: Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd today announced what the country had been talking about in hushed tones till now: high speed fixed lined broadband services for retail customers. It’s called JioGigaFiber and initial target is 1,100 cities. The regisrations for the same will be open from 15 August on the official Jio website and the app.

“India ranks low in fixed broadband. The company has already invested more than 250 million dollars in the industry. We will now extend the service 1,100 cities to offer the most advanced fibre-based broadband services. This will mean a faster internet experience. A virtual reality experience for all citizens where you can control switches in your house from outside as well. This will redefine 24*7 emergency help for all homes across India. We are calling this the JioGigaFiber," Ambani said while addressing the shareholders earlier in the day.

An updated version of Jio phone, called JioPhone 2, was also launched with added applications and functionality.

Isha Ambani said, “We are getting the three most popular apps, Facebook, Youtube and Whatsapp on the JioPhone.  JioPhone can send Whatsapp messages to other JioPhone users and other android and IOS users.”

Jio fixed line broadband service would come directly to customer homes, unlike in most cases where the fiber reaches only until the building and the last few meters of end connectivity is done using the traditional cable that drastically reduces the speed and user experience due to patches and inferior cable qualities of such patch up.

Keep tuned in for more updates.