State-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is gearing up to launch its 4G services nationwide soon, having completed trials across all circles. According to a senior official, BSNL could introduce its long-awaited 4G services to customers as early as October 2024, following satisfactory trial results. To date, the telecom company has established approximately 25,000 4G towers across the country and has begun distributing 4G SIM cards to its customers.
“We have successfully trialed our 4G network in all circles and major cities, and the results have been promising. It is now time to launch our commercial 4G services. We will conduct a few more trials before formally launching the 4G services,” said the senior official.
While private telecom providers such as Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea Limited are rolling out their 5G services, BSNL has so far been primarily offering 2G and 3G networks. As a result, the telco has been losing subscribers to private operators. In the last fiscal year alone, BSNL lost 18 million customers, reducing its subscriber base to 88.06 million. As of April 2024, BSNL’s market share has decreased to 7.46%, while its private sector competitors continue to strengthen their positions. The delay in BSNL’s 4G rollout has been attributed to the government’s directive for the company to use an indigenous network or India’s own 4G stack.
