Opensignal has released its October 2024 Mobile Network Experience report, highlighting key metrics in India’s 5G performance from June 1 to August 29, 2024. The report focuses on 5G metrics, including download speeds, upload speeds, live video experiences, and gaming experiences.
Market Insights
According to the report, Airtel leads the competitive mobile network landscape, winning nine categories, including all five 5G experience awards. Jio excels in five areas, particularly in 5G Availability and overall Download Speed Experience.
The expansion of 5G in India has primarily been driven by Jio and Airtel. Jio utilizes a standalone access (SA) network across rural and urban areas using the 700MHz and 3.5GHz bands, while Airtel employs a non-standalone access (NSA) approach for quicker deployment on its existing 4G network.
Despite high 5G Availability, both Airtel and Jio have experienced a decline in average 5G download speeds due to increased network congestion from growing 5G adoption. Currently, 16% of 5G connections operate on the 700MHz band, offering extensive coverage but limited speed, while 84% utilize the faster 3.5GHz band.
Operators’ Strategies
To address current challenges, Airtel and Jio are refining their strategies by optimizing spectrum use and expanding their 5G Standalone networks. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recently conducted a spectrum auction, providing additional bandwidth in the 900MHz and 1800MHz bands, while Airtel and Vi focus on renewing critical spectrum licenses.
Airtel is investing $1 billion to enhance its 4G network by adding around 300,000 new base stations over the next three years. In July 2024, both operators increased prices for their prepaid and postpaid plans, with Jio raising prices by 12% to 25% and Airtel by 11% to 21% to support their expanding 5G networks and meet rising data demands.
Key Findings
Airtel Leads in 5G Experience: Airtel has claimed all five awards for 5G experience, providing users with the fastest average 5G download and upload speeds while offering superior quality for streaming and gaming.
Jio’s Consistent Performance: Jio continues to dominate in the Consistent Quality category, scoring 66.5%, which is 3.2 percentage points higher than Airtel. This reflects Jio users’ higher success rates in meeting the minimum requirements for demanding mobile applications.
Jio Excels in Coverage: Jio holds the top position in all three coverage awards: Availability, 5G Availability, and Coverage Experience. Jio’s 5G Availability stands at 66.7%, significantly outperforming Airtel, which also leads in overall connectivity with a score of 99.4% in Availability.
Download and Upload Speeds: Airtel leads the 5G Download Speed category with an average speed of 239.7 Mbps, approximately 7% faster than Jio. For 5G Upload Speed, Airtel scores 23.3 Mbps, which is 83% faster than Jio’s 12.7 Mbps. However, Jio retains the overall Download Speed Experience award with 90 Mbps, almost double that of Airtel.
Jio’s 5G Availability: Jio’s 5G users are connected to 5G 66.7% of the time, nearly three times more than Airtel users, reflecting how much time users maintain an active 5G connection.
Opensignal October 2024 Report Highlights
Overall Experience
- Video Experience: Airtel leads with 62.4 points, followed by Jio and Vi. BSNL ranks last with 26.9 points.
- Live Video Experience: Airtel secures 55 points, just ahead of Jio’s 53 points.
- Games Experience: Airtel wins with 65.8 points, leading over Vi and Jio.
- Download Speed Experience: Jio retains the award with average speeds of 90 Mbps.
- Upload Speed Experience: Airtel takes this award with 6.9 Mbps, a 9% increase over Jio.
5G Experience
- 5G Video Experience: Airtel wins with 75 points, four points ahead of Jio.
- 5G Live Video Experience: Airtel scores 70 points, leading by five points over Jio.
- 5G Games Experience: Airtel wins with 80.8 points, outpacing Jio.
- 5G Download Speed: Airtel takes the lead with 239.7 Mbps.
- 5G Upload Speed: Airtel’s score of 23.3 Mbps is significantly higher than Jio’s.
Coverage Experience
- Coverage Experience: Jio leads with 9 points on a 10-point scale, far ahead of Airtel.
- Availability: Jio achieves 99.4%, slightly ahead of Airtel.
- 5G Availability: Jio scores 66.7%, leading Airtel by 42 percentage points.
Consistent Quality
- Jio wins the Consistent Quality award with a score of 66.5%, maintaining a lead over Airtel.
Future Outlook
Opensignal notes that while Airtel and Jio are advancing their 5G strategies, Vodafone Idea (Vi) and BSNL are facing challenges. Vi’s financial difficulties have hindered its full-scale 5G launch, prompting a focus on improving its 4G network and preparing for future 5G deployments, while BSNL continues to enhance its 4G services.