iWorld
Airtel makes roaming data & incoming free
MUMBAI: Bharti Airtel, India’s largest telecommunications services provider, today announced radical changes that redefine the value proposition for domestic and international roaming. With this, Airtel mobile customers will be able to carry their numbers across India and the world and stay connected all the time without having to worry about high call/data charges. Bill shocks will now be a thing of the past.
National Roaming – Free Incoming Calls
No Premium on Outgoing Calls
No Data Roaming Charges
Starting 1 April, 2017, Airtel customers roaming within India will enjoy free incoming calls/SMS and there will be no premium on outgoing calls allowing them to speak freely wherever they are within the country. Also, there will be no additional data charges on national roaming. Home data packs for customers will apply even while they roam across India.
Bharti Airtel MD & CEO (India & South Asia) Gopal Vittal said, “This marks the death of national roaming and the whole country will now be like a local network for our customers, who will not have to think twice before making or receiving calls or using data while traveling outside their home base. Airtel has again set the benchmark in delivering best in class value backed by a great network experience.”
No bill shocks on international roaming
Airtel has already launched innovative and affordable International Roaming packs for all major countries across the world. These packs come with convenient validity options of 1 day, 10 days, and 30 days and offer loads of benefits including free incoming calls/SMS, calling minutes and texts both to India and the local country as well as generous dollops of data to stay online. These packs have received an overwhelming response from customers, shielding them from any bill shock and eliminating the need for a local country SIM. However, there are still several cases of customers inadvertently failing to choose these packs and suffering bill shocks due to thesteep roaming charges on international networks.
Starting April 1, 2017, even customers on international roaming Without a Pack will be fully protected from bill shocks through an automatic adjustment that is equal to the daily pack for that particular country. This means that the moment a customer’s billing reaches the price of a one day pack for the country, he/she will be automatically moved to that pack. This will allow our customers to use their devices abroad without any fear. Even post the exhaustion of pack benefits, customers will continue to enjoy extremely attractive rates for calling and data usage. Call Charges have been reduced by up to 90% to as low as Rs. 3/min and data charges by upto 99% to Rs 3/ MB across popular roaming destinations.
Here is an example of how Airtel’s new international roaming pricing works. When a customer traveling to the USA without a pack hits the threshold of Rs 649 (the price of the one day pack for USA), he/she will automatically move to the one day pack with free incoming calls/SMS, 100 India and local country outgoing minutes, 300 MB data and a host of other benefits. Similarly, a customer traveling to Singapore will move to the one day pack the moment his/her usage hits the Rs 499 mark.
Bharti Airtel and GSMA chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal said, “At Airtel, we are changing the international roaming paradigm, which will allow our customers to take their number to every corner of the world. As an industry, operators across the world must collaborate to remove the cost barrier to roaming and offer customers the convenience of staying connected without the fear of exorbitant bill charges.”
iWorld
JioHotstar enters micro-drama space with 100 shows under Tadka banner
Short-form push targets 300M users as content meets commerce in new format
MUMBAI: JioStar has made a bold play in India’s fast-growing micro-drama space, rolling out over 100 short-form shows under its new Tadka banner on JioHotstar, timed with the massive viewership surge of the Indian Premier League 2026.
The scale of the launch signals clear intent. Rather than testing the waters, the company has dived in headfirst, releasing a wide slate of content on day one. Each show is designed for quick consumption, with episodes running 60 to 90 seconds in a vertical format tailored for mobile-first audiences.
The move comes as India’s micro-drama market, currently valued at around $300 million, is projected to grow tenfold to over $3 billion by 2030. Globally, the format has already proven its mettle, with China’s micro-drama sector recording explosive growth in recent years.
What sets this rollout apart is its built-in monetisation strategy. The shows are free to watch and ad-supported, with brand integrations woven directly into storylines from the outset. It reflects a broader shift where content and commerce are increasingly intertwined, rather than operating in silos.
The timing is equally strategic. With more than 300 million users already tuning in for IPL action, JioHotstar is effectively turning cricket’s biggest stage into a discovery engine for its new format.
The company is not entering an empty arena. Early movers like Kuku TV, MX Player and platforms backed by Zee Entertainment Enterprises have already laid the groundwork, building audiences and validating demand for snackable storytelling.
Now, with scale, distribution and advertiser interest aligning, the big players are stepping in. For JioStar, Tadka may well serve as a proving ground for the next evolution of digital entertainment, where every minute counts and every second sells.
If the bet pays off, India’s next big content wave might just arrive in under 90 seconds.
