At Reliance Industries' 41st AGM meeting today, RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani announced the launch of wired broadband service JioGigaFiber. Ambani said he is determined to make India one of the TOP 5 in fixed line broadband service. JioGigaFiber, which offers fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) broadband connections, is currently running beta trials in tens of thousands of homes.
Starting August 15, those interested can register through MyJio or Jio.com for the JioGigaFiber. Areas from where RIL gets maximum registration will see an early roll out of JioGigaFiber.
JioGigaFiber will be simultaneously launched in 1,100 cities across India. It will be world's largest greenfield investment in fixed line broadband, Mukesh Ambani said.
After disrupting the telecom sector with Reliance Jio's cheap mobile data tariffs, the Mukesh Ambani-led retail-to-refining conglomerate is looking to expand its JioFiber boradband business.
The shareholders' meeting of India's largest private company by revenues saw some announcements relating to JioPhone 2 as well as company's e-commerce platform.
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12:05 pm: The size of Reliance will more than double by 2025, says Mukesh Ambani
12:00 pm: Reliance Industries has employed over 2 lakh people in the last two years. Jio and retail have created 10 lakh livelihoods indirectly
11:59 am: Our Jamnagar facility now has the world's largest paraxylene producing unit, says Mukesh Ambani. Reliance is the largest recycler of PET bottles in India.
11:57 am: Along with our partner BP, we will deploy various technologies to ensure that we start gas production from KG-D6 by 2020. We aim to achieve production of 30-35 million cubic meters of per day by 2022: Mukesh Ambani
11:55 am: We are the largest re-cycler of PET bottles in India, says Mukesh Ambani
11:49 am: Reliance Trendz continues to be the largest apparel seller in India, while Reliance Digital is the largest seller of electronics and digital products in the country.
11:46 am: We see the maximum scope in creating a unique online-to-offline platform, says Mukesh Ambani. This will be done by combining the resources of Reliance Retail and Jio's digital infrastructure
11:42 am: JioGigaFiber will be simultaneously launched in 1,100 cities across India. It will be world's largest greenfield investment in fixed line broadband, says Mukesh Ambani
11:40 am: RIL is currently running beta trials in tens of thousands of homes for the JioGigaFiber. Those interested can register through MyJio or Jio.com. Starting August 15, you can register your interest in the JioGigaFiber. Locations from where we get maximum registration will see the early roll out of JioGigaFiber, says Mukesh Ambani
11:37 am: Mukesh Ambani announces Monsoon Hungama offer for JioPhone, users can exchange their existing feature phones for a new JioPhone at just Rs 501
11:36 am: Your home will have wall-to-wall Wi-Fi coverage, every appliance, plug point, switch will become smart. You can have cameras giving you 24x7 security monitoring, alerts: Akash Ambani at RIL's AGM
11:35 am: Starting August 15, JioPhone 2 will be available for Rs 2,999
11:25 am: Reliance Jio launches JioPhone 2, an advanced version on JioPhone.
11:22 am: JioPhone to have Youtube, Facebook and WhatsApp
11:18 am: Mukesh Ambani announces the launch of JioGigaFiber, fixed line broadband service.
11:13 am: We have more than 25 million JioPhone users in India: Mukesh Ambani
11:07 am: Since I last spoke we have double dour customer base. Reliance Jio has 215 million customers now. No company in the world has been able to achieve this growth in just two years, says Ambani.
11:05 am: It's the first AGM since Reliance Jio began its golden decade, says Mukesh Ambani
11:03 am: Shloka Mehta, who is engaged to Mukesh Ambani's son Akash Ambani, is seated next to group matriarch Kokilaben Ambani.
11:00 am: RIL Chairman arrives at Birla Matushri Sabhagar in Mumbai, where AGM is happening.
The company may also reveal its plans for Reliance Retail. During the last AGM, Ambani had set a target of 30 per cent growth each year over the next decade for Reliance Retail, which is expanding in rural and semi-urban markets. RIL, which is valued Rs 6.3 lakh crore, has generated an EBIT of Rs 2,064 crore from retail business, on a revenue of over Rs 69,000 crore.
At the annual general meeting (AGM) on July 5, RIL will seek approval to issue redeemable non-convertible debentures, it said in its latest annual report, without specifying how the money will be used. According to Bloomberg, the company plans to borrow Rs 20,000 crore for recapitalising existing loans. The company's loans of about Rs 90,000 crore are nearing maturity in the next three years. RIL's outstanding debt stood at Rs 2,18,763 crore at the end of last fiscal, while cash and cash equivalent stood at Rs 78,063 crore - largely in bank deposits, mutual funds, corporate deposits, government bonds and other marketable securities.
Another question that Ambani is expected to face from shareholders will be unlocking value in telecom and retail. Since both ventures have turned profitable - Jio posted net profit of Rs 723 crore in the first year of commercial operations - the chairman is expected to throw some light on it. In the past, RIL has twice listed its refining business - Reliance Petroleum - as part of value unlocking exercise.