In Opensignal’s recent Mobile Network Experience report, we assessed the overall and 5G experience across India. In this report, we examine the 4G experience of smartphone 4G users (when they were connected to 4G) and compare India’s four leading mobile network operators, Vi, Airtel, Jio and BSNL, over a period of 90 days starting on June 01, 2024, and ending on August 29, 2024, to see how they fared.
Our analysis shows that Vi is the operator to beat when it comes to 4G network experience in India, nationally and regionally. Vi is the outright winner across all six categories nationally: 4G Download Speed, 4G Upload Speed, 4G Video Experience, 4G Live Video Experience, 4G Games Experience, and 4G Voice App Experience. This means our Vi 4G users don’t just enjoy the fastest 4G speeds but also observe the best quality of experience while streaming videos live and on-demand, playing multiplayer mobile games and using and using over-the-top (OTT) voice services on mobile voice apps when connected to 4G in India.
Additionally, Vi emerges as the leader in our analysis of 4G experience across 21 telecom circles in India — taking home nearly 80% of the awards jointly or outright, and achieving a clean sweep across six telecom circles.
India's telecom market is among the fastest-growing and most competitive in the world, with millions of users depending on expanding 4G networks and emerging 5G technology. Major operators are in fierce competition to enhance network quality, expand their coverage, and build customer loyalty amid rising mobile data consumption. While Jio and Airtel have accelerated their 5G deployments through substantial investments, Vi has faced unique financial challenges and is focusing on optimizing its 4G network.
Opensignal data shows that despite financial constraints and other challenges, Vi has displayed resilience and continues to differentiate itself competitively in various aspects of 4G users' 4G experience across the country.
Key findings:
The fastest 4G user experience in India on 4G is with Vi
Our 4G users on Vi enjoy the fastest average 4G download speeds in the country, clocking in 17.4Mbps — 8% faster than Airtel and 22% faster than Jio — when connected to 4G. Likewise, Vi is also at the top when it comes to average 4G upload speeds.
Vi leads in terms of 4G Video and Live Video Experience
Our 4G users observe the best on-demand and live video streaming experience over 4G with Vi. Vi’s scores on a 100-point scale place it in the Good (58-68) category for 4G Video Experience and earn it a Good (43-53) rating for 4G Live Video Experience.
Vi is top for 4G Games and 4G Voice App Experience
When connected to a 4G signal, our 4G users experience the best quality of experience while playing multiplayer mobile games and using over-the-top (OTT) voice services on mobile voice apps. Vi wins both award categories, surpassing Airtel’s scores by a small margin.
Vi outshines the competition for regional 4G Experience
In line with the national results, Vi dominates our 4G users’ 4G experience at the circle level. Vi takes home the lion’s share of awards for download and upload speed experience, on-demand and live video streaming experience, as well as multiplayer mobile gaming and voice app experience. Vi is the outright winner of all six categories in Assam, Haryana, Karnataka, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal telecom circles.
National Analysis:
4G Video Experience - 4G Users
Vi is top in India when it comes to the quality of 4G user experience while streaming on-demand video over a 4G connection. Vi wins the 4G Video Experience award with a score of 61.1 points (on a scale of 0-100), about 2% ahead of Airtel and 5% ahead of Jio.
As a result, Vi, Airtel and Jio place in the Good (58-68) category for 4G Video Experience, while BSNL earns a Poor rating with its score of 42.9 points.
A Good (58-68) rating means that our users are, on average, able to stream video at 720p or better with satisfactory loading times and little stalling. Video Experience scores account for adaptive bitrate streaming (ABR), a technology that allows Opensignal to accurately represent users' real video experience including video streams up to 4K quality.
4G Live Video Experience - 4G Users
Vi wins the 4G Live Video Experience award in India with a score of 52.3 points on a 100-point scale, outperforming Airtel’s and Jio’s score by about 3% and 9% respectively.
Live Video Experience comprises a range of measures that impact users' perceived live streaming viewing experience, including picture quality, video loading time and stall rate, but also live playback offset — the time difference between real-time and the current playback position a viewer sees. Unlike Video Experience, which represents on-demand video streams, Live Video Experience quantifies live video streaming used for current events. For example, when users watch live sports, game streams, music concerts or news.
With these scores, Airtel, Jio and Vi achieve a Good (43-53) rating for 4G Live Video Experience, which means our users were, on average, able to stream video at least at 720p with satisfactory loading times, little stalling and a substantial live offset.
4G Games Experience - 4G Users
Our users on Vi enjoy the best experience in India when playing multiplayer mobile games over 4G connections. Vi wins the 4G Games Experience award, scoring 65.2 points on a 100-point scale, giving it a winning margin of three points over second-placed Airtel. Jio and BSNL are in third and fourth place, respectively, with scores of 57.7 points and 46.3 points.
4G Voice Experience - 4G Users
Vi is top for 4G Voice App Experience, winning the award with a score of 78.8 points and a modest lead of one and two points over Airtel and Jio respectively. Airtel, Jio and Vi receive Acceptable (74-80) ratings for 4G Voice App Experience, while BSNL rates as Poor (66-74).
An Acceptable Voice App Experience means some users are satisfied and listeners are generally able to comprehend without repetition. However, some users experience perceptible call quality impairments.
4G Download Speed - 4G Users
Our smartphone 4G users experience the fastest average 4G download speed in India with Vi, 17.4Mbps on average — about 8% faster than Airtel users and 22% faster than Jio users. On the other hand, BSNL users report the lowest average 4G download speed of 6.8Mbps.
4G Upload Speed - 4G Users
Vi is the winner of the 4G Upload Speed award, as our 4G users observe the fastest average upload speed on Jio over 4G connections — 4.7Mbps on average, followed by those on Airtel with 4.4Mbps.
Regional Analysis:
In line with the national results, Vi leads in regional 4G Video and 4G Live Video experience results. Vi is top for the quality of on-demand video streaming in 17 circles, including six joint wins. Similarly, it wins outright in 11 circles for 4G Live Video Experience and shares the top spot in a further five.
Vi also leads in 4G Games and 4G Voice App Experience regionally. Vi comes top for 4G Games Experience in 18 circles, including five circles, where it shares the winners’ podium with Airtel. For 4G Voice App Experience, Vi is the outright winner in 10 circles and shares first place in a further 10, including Kolkata where we see a three-way split between Airtel, Jio and Vi.
The regional analysis also reflects Vi's national dominance in 4G speeds, leading outright in 13 circles for 4G Download Speed and 4G Upload Speed. Airtel and Vi are joint winners for 4G Download Speed in two circles, Gujarat and Maharashtra, and share a regional 4G Upload Speed award in Madhya Pradesh.
Vi wins outright across all six award categories in six circles — Assam, Haryana, Karnataka, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
Methodology:
4G Users: The 4G Experience metrics in this analysis are based on data from “4G-only” users. These are our users who we have seen connecting to 4G at any point of time, but we have never seen them connecting to 5G. They may have also experienced 2G, 3G, or no signal, meaning they belong to the group of users who access 4G or lower network generations.
4G Video Experience - 4G Users: Quantifies the quality of video streamed to 4G Users’ mobile devices by measuring real-world video streams over an operator's 4G network. To calculate video experience, we are directly measuring video streams from end-user devices and using this ITU approach to quantify the 4G video experience for each operator on a scale from 0 to 100. The videos tested include a mixture of resolutions — including Full HD (FHD) and 4K / Ultra HD (UHD) — and are streamed directly from the world’s largest video content providers.
4G Live Video Experience - 4G Users: Quantifies the quality of real-time video streamed to 4G Users’ mobile devices by measuring video streams over an operator's 4G network. To calculate 4G Live Video experience, we are directly measuring live video streams from end-user devices and using this extension of ITU's approach to quantify the overall live video experience for each operator on a scale from 0 to 100. The videos tested include a mixture of resolutions.
4G Games Experience - 4G Users: Measures how 4G Users experience real-time multiplayer mobile gaming on an operator’s 4G network. 4G Games Experience quantifies the experience when playing real-time multiplayer mobile games on mobile devices connected to servers located around the world. Calculating 4G Games Experience starts with measuring the end-to-end experience from users’ devices to internet end-points that host real games. The score is then measured on a scale from 0 to 100.
4G Voice App Experience - 4G Users: Measures the quality of 4G Users’ experience for over-the-top (OTT) voice services — mobile voice apps such as WhatsApp, Skype and Facebook Messenger — over an operator’s 4G network using a model derived from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) approach for quantifying overall voice call quality and a series of calibrated technical parameters. This model characterizes the exact relationship between the technical measurements and perceived call quality. Voice App Experience for each operator is calculated on a scale from 0 to 100.
4G Download Speed- 4G Users: Measured in Mbps, this metric represents the typical everyday 4G speeds that 4G Users experience on an operator’s 4G mobile network.
4G Upload Speed- 4G Users: : Measured in Mbps, this metric measures the average 4G upload speeds for each operator observed by our 4G Users across their 4G mobile network.
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