In the near future, Indian customers would have to pay more to keep using telecom services. According to a source, in keeping with their recent rate repair efforts to improve income visibility, telecom providers like Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea (Vi) may once more start a periodic pricing hike before the end of the year. It is anticipated that the market will grow more concentrated, with Jio and Airtel perhaps solidifying their positions and gaining a sizable portion of the market.
Tariff Hike in 2025
Moneycontrol claims that cellular operators in India may increase charges by 10 to 20 percent by December 2025, citing an analysis by the international trading firm Bernstein. It might be the fourth significant price increase in the past six years; the latest one occurred in July 2024, when businesses increased their tariffs by up to 25%. The increase is ascribed to telcos’ growing capital requirements as a result of 4G’s fortification and 5G’s growth.
In keeping with industry-wide efforts to fix tariffs, we expect a tariff increase in November–December 2025. According to the analysis, this action could improve the sector’s income visibility and act as a major catalyst.
The brokerage firm claims that consistent subscriber additions and robust Average Revenue per User (ARPU) growth will propel both Airtel and Jio to mid- to high-teen revenue growth in the 2025–2027 timeframe. According to reports, telecom providers are increasing their income share from current users rather of relying solely on onboarding new customers.
Meanwhile, Vi is said to be in a tough financial spot, although some of the troubles are said to have been alleviated following the government’s agreement to convert the telco’s spectrum dues into equity shares, increasing its stake from 22.6 percent to 48.99 percent.
The study goes on to say that “the equity conversion increases the probability of price discipline & future tariff hike & signals the government’s commitment to preserve a three-player market structure.”
According to reports, Bernstein anticipates a 15% tariff increase in December 2025, with yearly increases from 2026 to 2033. Tariff increases may become more frequent, but they may not be as significant as they were from 2019 to 2025. According to reports, the tariff increases will assist telecom providers in reaching a tariff compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10%. Furthermore, in the second part of the 2026 fiscal year, Vi’s capital spending might aid the third-largest telecom company in India in stabilizing its subscriber decline.
