#JioGigaFiber : Unrealistic Target, Tie up with Netflix or Own Contents

After disrupting mobile space with Jio, Mukesh Ambani targets DTH and Cable TV business with its fiber to home services (Jio Giga Fiber @ 1Gigabits per second) - with a target of 50 million subscribers in 1100 cities to achieve in two years. 

Jio Giga Fiber will provide  ultra high definition entertainment on TV, voice activated assistance, virtual reality gaming and digital shopping as well as smart home solutions on its state of art optic fiber network. Registration for Jio Giga Fiber will start from August 15, 2018. 

But but and but... 

Analysts believe that Jio's target to reach 50 million households with FTTH is an unrealistic target. The main reason is Indians prefer wireless internet on smartphone over fixed line broadband as the entry cost to FTTH is high plus they need to buy equipments of higher cost. But as Jio did for 4G with JioPhone, many believe that Jio may offer FTTH devices or CPE (customer premises equipment) at a nominal cost. Still you need to buy a smart TV costing nearly INR 20-40K minimum to unlock all features of Jio Fiber. 


Next problem Jio will face is to connect last mile with fiber. Offering wireless services is quite easier - set up a tower with fiber backup and that's it. For example Airtel which now covers nearly 100% of population has only 2.5 million fixed broadband customers after so many years while total fixed broadband subscribers of India stands at just 18 million. 

The research firm New Initiatives, CMR thinks the target Jio set with Giga fiber is 'only hypothetical even in thinking' and also comments that Jio's growth of initial year is impossible to replicate in coming years even on wireless space.

Jio will try to disrupt the cable TV and DTH business with the Giga Fiber project as it incorporates internet, TV, telephony, smart home, gaming, digital shopping, security solutions, internet of things and many more. But many thinks it will not be easier to get customers move from existing DTH/cable TV to Jio, as offering smart TV solutions via app can offer the customers same experience on existing DTH/cable TV. The market will evolve and so existing players will not be a prey of Jio. 

And the contents - today's generation is more comfortable with smartphones and many of them don't watch TV. So app based content delivery services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Rupert Murdoch owned Hotstar, MTv's Voot will take a major charge in this market. Even the local digital content makers like Balaji's ALTBalaji, Zee Media's Zee5 (which airs Karenjit Kaur: The Untold Story of Sunny Leone), ‎Shree Venkatesh Films's HoiChoi, Rajiv Mehra backed Addatimes (has reached Bangladesh also) etc are making quality contents. 

Interestingly what Jio stirred to create - almost unlimited data at a pretty cheap price is well recognised by Netflix. In March this year Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said, “Reliance Jio has been a transformational network in India and has brought down data cost massively. There are other people around the world having that kind of impact and can get people to use internet more. We hope someone would do a Reliance Jio in every other country,'' 

Netflix had initially very few takers as it had almost zero Indian/local contents and it was considered as a premium services. But the situation is changing, Indian filmmakers are working with Netflix under their own banners - Sacred Games is a hit and horror series Ghoul is in the pipe. Now Netflix and Jio may join hands, while at the same time Jio may start its own production house for Jio exclusive contents.