Reliance Jio discontinues two popular prepaid plans ahead of price hike

Reliance Jio has announced a major tariff hike effective from July 3, 2024. In response, many users have rushed to recharge their accounts with their favourite plans to avoid the higher rates. However, Jio has discontinued two of its most popular prepaid plans, the Rs 395 and Rs 1559 plans.

These plans offered unlimited 5G data with extended validity periods, making them an attractive option to users. The Rs 395 plan provided 84 days of service, while the Rs 1559 plan offered 336 days of validity.

As a result of the price hike, these plans many customers who wanted to recharge their numbers in advance couldn't find the two prepaid plans on Jio's website. Despite allowing users to queue up prepaid plans for future activation, Jio has made these plans unavailable for recharge.

The relatively lower Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) figure due to the popular plans could be the reason behind the discontinuation of the two plans.

Clever Jio 🥲
They removed ₹395 and ₹1559 plan.#Telecom #tariffs #jio pic.twitter.com/5cr2QRlkVD

— Abhishek Yadav (@yabhishekhd) June 27, 2024

RIP to Jio 395 and 1559 recharge plan 🫤 pic.twitter.com/QEJix8yOHT

— 𝕏 🧑‍💻 (@IamutX) June 28, 2024

Currently, only a single pack is visible under “Affordable Plans” option. As part of the broader tariff adjustments, Jio has raised the price of its base Rs 155 plan by 22%, now costing Rs 189. However, the Rs 155 plan is available for users who recharge their accounts before July 3. The plan provides 2GB of data for a period of 28 days. The Rs 155 plan does not provide 'Unlimited 5G' similar to what the Rs 395 and 1,559 plans did. 

This price hike by all major telcos in the country reflects their strategy to enhance its ARPU and maintain profitability amid the rollout of new 5G services and infrastructure investments. 

This move disappointed many long-term users who relied on the cost-effective plans. 

Reliance Jio is not the only telco that is hiking its tariffs. Airtel and Vodafone Idea have also issued price hikes. Airtel will be increasing the prices from July 3 whereas Vodafone Idea customers will see higher tariffs from July 4.