Reliance’s digital arm, Jio Platforms, has unveiled a new mobile handset and associated tariff plans, the latest in a series of years-long efforts from the top Indian telecom operator as it vies to convert users who remain entrenched in the country’s legacy 2G networks.

Named ‘Jio Bharat,’ the handset from Jio Platforms is 4G-enabled and offers a suite of modern features including mobile payments capabilities with UPI, and access to Jio’s own on-demand video and music streaming services, JioCinema and JioSaavn. 

The company said it will manufacture the Jio Bharat and also partner with other phonemakers to adopt the Jio Bharat Platform to build the handsets. The Delhi-headquartered Karbonn has signed up to the platform, Reliance said.

The Jio Bharat is priced at 999 Indian rupees, or $12.2, Reliance said in a statement Monday. Jio Bharat is aimed at reaching about 250 million consumers in India who have not been able to afford switching to 4G networks, the Indian giant said. The handset is part of the offering, the other play is the new affordable tariff plan.

Jio Platform unveiled a new monthly plan that costs just 123 Indian rupees, or $1.5 that enables 14GB of data usage for the month and unlimited voice calls. For those subscribing for the year, the plan costs 1,234 Indian rupees, or $15.

Reliance said it will start offering the Jio Bharat to consumers starting July 7 as part of a “beta trial.” It said the trial is put in place to “ensure scalability of platform and processes for upgrading millions of feature phone users.”

“The new Jio Bharat phone is another step in that direction. It is at the centre of innovation, and it continues to demonstrate our focus on bringing disproportionate and true value for different segments of users with meaningful, real-life use cases,” said Akash Ambani, Chairman at Reliance Jio, in a statement.

More to follow.

India’s Reliance launches $12 4G-enabled phone to extend reach by Manish Singh originally published on TechCrunch