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Jio, which placed third in our last report, came top in Video Experience, with an impressive 6.8 points improvement reported by our users on its network and slight declines reported by our Airtel and Vi users of 1.2 points and 1.8 points respectively. As a result, Jio not only edges into the lead in a very close run race, with less than two points separating the scores of three national operators on this measure but also upgrades its Video Experience rating from Fair (40-55) to Good (55-65). Meanwhile, Airtel and Vi's scores continue to place in the Good category. This means our Indian smartphone users on three out of four national networks enjoyed a Good Video Experience.
Vi users reported the fastest Download Speed Experience and Upload Speed Experience of 12.8 Mbps and 4.3 Mbps, respectively. But our users on Airtel and Jio see the greatest improvements on both the speed measures, allowing both operators to reduce the gap between them and Vi, since our last report. As a result, Vi's lead over second-placed Airtel dropped from 1.4 Mbps to 0.4 Mbps in Download Speed Experience and from 0.9 Mbps to 0.5 Mbps on Upload Speed Experience. Jio's scores have improved dramatically. Our Jio users saw their average download speeds rise by 5 Mbps (70.2%) to 12.1 Mbps and saw average upload speeds increase by 0.8 Mbps (31.6%) to 3.3 Mbps. With these scores, Jio remains third-placed on both the measures, just, but has narrowed the gap to 0.7 Mbps or 1 Mbps of the winner in each speed category.
Airtel once again wins the Games Experience and Voice App Experience awards, this time with scores of 57.2 points and 76.8 points, respectively, on a 100 point scale. This means that our users on Airtel's network perceived the best experience while playing multiplayer mobile games and using over-the-top (OTT) voice apps when connected to a mobile network in India. While Airtel's scores for both these experiential measures dipped slightly by 1.0-1.3 points, Jio's scores improved by 6.6 points on Games Experience and 1.1 points on Voice App Experience to narrow the gap.
Jio continues to lead in both of our measures of 4G access by winning the 4G Availability award with a score of 99.3% and the 4G Coverage Experience award with a score of 9.4 points (out of 10) — improvements of 0.2 percentage points and 0.1 points, respectively, since our last report. Our 4G Availability metric shows the proportion of time that users with a 4G device and subscription had a 4G connection. Meanwhile, 4G Coverage Experience analyzes the locations where customers of a network operator received a 4G signal relative to the locations visited by users of all network operators.
The Indian mobile landscape continues to grow increasingly competitive as operators are trying to offer the best experience to their users. In our last report, Airtel won three out of seven award categories. However, in our latest look at India, we see Jio’s experience improves significantly and pull ahead in the number of Opensignal awards it wins. Jio wins three awards outright — it holds on to our awards for 4G Availability and 4G Coverage Experience, and also takes the Video Experience award from Airtel with a winning margin of 0.9 points. This change resulted from a 6.8 point improvement reported by our Jio users compared to a 1.2 point decline reported by Airtel users.
India's three largest mobile operators — Airtel, Jio and Vi — found themselves in a closely run race on five award categories. Only 0.4-2.5 points separate all three operators' scores on three experiential measures (Video Experience, Games Experience and Voice App Experience) and just 0.3-0.7 Mbps separate their scores in both the speed measures (Download Speed Experience and Upload Speed Experience).
This boost in Jio's mobile network experience scores is likely because the operator has started using additional spectrum in the 800 MHz (3GPP bands 5), 1800 MHz and 2300 MHz bands, which it won in the auction earlier this year, to boost capacity on existing 4G networks. Last month, Jio also bought more spectrum in the 800 MHz band from Bharti Airtel in three circles.
Airtel has also started using the newly acquired spectrum, which is likely a reason our Airtel users have reported improvements on speed measures. On the other hand, Vi has been losing customers which may have reduced pressure on its network.. Airtel and Vi won two awards each. Our Indian users observed the best Games Experience and Voice App Experience when connected to Airtel's nework and the fastest average download and upload speeds on Vi's network.
Among other developments in the market, the Indian government recently announced that 5G spectrum auctions are likely to be conducted early next year and has handed out spectrum to the telcos to conduct 5Gi trials. India 5Gi is an indigenously developed sub-standard of 5G , which has been recently approved by the ITU. However, Indian telecom operators have raised concerns regarding interoperability and the high cost of network deployment where 5Gi deployment is concerned. Reportedly, Airtel and Vi are trialing 5G non-standalone access (NSA), while Jio is testing 5G standalone access (SA).
For this report, we've gathered data across the 90 day period starting on June 1, 2021 and ending on August 29, 2021 to see how the four national operators — Airtel, BSNL, Jio and Vi — stack up, both at a national level and circle level; covering all 22 telecom circles in the country.
| Mobile Experience Awards India | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
September 2021,
India Report
|
A
Airtel
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B
BSNL
|
J
Jio
|
V
Vi
|
Video Experience
| ||||
Games Experience
| ||||
Voice App Experience
| ||||
Download Speed Experience
| ||||
Upload Speed Experience
| ||||
4G Availability
| ||||
4G Coverage Experience
| ||||
|
Mobile Experience Awards Winners
|
September 2021,
India
|
|---|---|
|
Video Experience
|
J
Jio
|
|
Games Experience
|
A
Airtel
|
|
Voice App Experience
|
A
Airtel
|
|
Download Speed Experience
|
V
Vi
|
|
Upload Speed Experience
|
V
Vi
|
|
4G Availability
|
J
Jio
|
|
4G Coverage Experience
|
J
Jio
|
Our users on Jio saw their Video Experience improve by 6.8 points to 60.1 points (on a scale of 0-100), while those on Airtel saw their scores decline by 1.2 points. As a result, Jio places in the Good category (55-65) alongside Airtel and wins the Video Experience award with a lead of 0.9 points. On the other hand, BSNL users also saw their Video Experience decline by 1.2 points, and those on Vi reported a greater decline of 1.8 points. While Vi is the third operator in the Good category, BSNL remains the only one in the Poor category.
|
Video Experience
Additional Metrics |
A
Airtel
|
B
BSNL
|
J
Jio
|
V
Vi
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| in 0-100 points | ||||
|
4G Video Experience
| 59.2 (± 0.04) | 42.4 (± 0.70) | 60.1 (± 0.04) | 59.8 (± 0.07) |
|
3G Video Experience
| 45.3 (± 1.71) | 35.5 (± 0.42) | — | 40.2 (± 0.43) |
| 4G Video Experience | in 0-100 points |
|
A
Airtel
|
59 (± 0.04) |
|
B
BSNL
|
42 (± 0.70) |
|
J
Jio
|
60 (± 0.04) |
|
V
Vi
|
60 (± 0.07) |
| 3G Video Experience | in 0-100 points |
|
A
Airtel
|
45 (± 1.71) |
|
B
BSNL
|
36 (± 0.42) |
|
J
Jio
|
— |
|
V
Vi
|
40 (± 0.43) |
Opensignal's Video Experience directly assesses video streams from end-user devices and uses an International Telecommunication Union (ITU)-based approach to quantify the overall video experience for each operator on a scale from 0 to 100. The videos tested include a mixture of resolutions and are streamed directly from the world's largest video content providers.
A Good rating indicates that users enjoyed an acceptable experience when streaming mobile video at lower resolutions, but loading times may have been slow, and stalling may have occurred, especially at higher resolutions. As we descend to lower ratings, loading times lengthen, and users encounter more stops and stutters in video streams, most notably at higher resolutions. A Poor Video Experience indicates prolonged loading times, and that frequent stalling was common.
Airtel remains the outright winner of Opensignal's Games Experience award this time with a score of 57.2 points (on a 100-point scale), while Vi and Jio are close behind with scores of 56.5 and 54.7, respectively. BSNL continued to lag with a significantly lower score of 37.1 points. However, our Airtel and Vi users reported declines of 1.3-1.6 points, and those on Jio and BSNL reported improvements of 6.6 and 0.3 points, respectively. These changes mean Airtel users continue to enjoy a better Games Experience and the operator’s lead over second-placed Vi has expanded slightly from 0.5 to 0.7 points. However, Airtel’s lead over Jio has contracted from 10.4 to 2.5 points.
|
Games Experience
Additional Metrics |
A
Airtel
|
B
BSNL
|
J
Jio
|
V
Vi
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| in 0-100 points | ||||
|
4G Games Experience
| 57.2 (± 0.05) | 42.3 (± 0.31) | 54.7 (± 0.05) | 59.2 (± 0.07) |
|
3G Games Experience
| 35.9 (± 0.27) | 36.1 (± 0.10) | — | 35.6 (± 0.07) |
| 4G Games Experience | in 0-100 points |
|
A
Airtel
|
57 (± 0.05) |
|
B
BSNL
|
42 (± 0.31) |
|
J
Jio
|
55 (± 0.05) |
|
V
Vi
|
59 (± 0.07) |
| 3G Games Experience | in 0-100 points |
|
A
Airtel
|
36 (± 0.27) |
|
B
BSNL
|
— |
|
J
Jio
|
— |
|
V
Vi
|
36 (± 0.07) |
Opensignal's Games Experience quantifies the experience when playing real-time multiplayer mobile games on mobile devices connected to servers located around the world. The approach is built on several years of research, quantifying the relationship between technical network parameters and the gaming experience as reported by real mobile users. These parameters include latency (round trip time), jitter (variability of latency) and packet loss (the proportion of data packets that never reach their destination). Additionally, it considers multiple genres of multiplayer mobile games to measure the average sensitivity to network conditions. The games tested include some of the most popular real-time multiplayer mobile games (such as Fortnite, Pro Evolution Soccer and Arena of Valor) played around the world.
Airtel remains the outright winner of our Voice App Experience award, this time with a score of 78.6 points (out of 100). However, the operator's lead over second-placed Vi (which scored 76.2 points) has decreased slightly on this measure since our last report — from one point to 0.6 points. This is due to a one-point dip reported by our Airtel users and 0.6 point decline reported by our Vi users. Meanwhile, Jio's score improved by 1.1 points to 75.8 points, and it, Airtel and Vi have remained in the Acceptable category (74-80).
|
Voice App Experience
Additional Metrics |
A
Airtel
|
B
BSNL
|
J
Jio
|
V
Vi
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| in 0-100 points | ||||
|
4G Voice App Experience
| 76.8 (± 0.02) | 71.8 (± 0.20) | 75.8 (± 0.02) | 76.9 (± 0.03) |
|
3G Voice App Experience
| 68.3 (± 0.60) | 68.5 (± 0.22) | — | 67.4 (± 0.17) |
| 4G Voice App Experience | in 0-100 points |
|
A
Airtel
|
77 (± 0.02) |
|
B
BSNL
|
72 (± 0.20) |
|
J
Jio
|
76 (± 0.02) |
|
V
Vi
|
77 (± 0.03) |
| 3G Voice App Experience | in 0-100 points |
|
A
Airtel
|
68 (± 0.60) |
|
B
BSNL
|
69 (± 0.22) |
|
J
Jio
|
— |
|
V
Vi
|
67 (± 0.17) |
Opensignal's Voice App Experience measures the quality of experience for over-the-top (OTT) voice services — for example, mobile voice apps such as WhatsApp, Skype or Facebook Messenger — using a model derived from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)-based 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 100 point scale.
Our Indian users have once again observed the highest average download speeds on Vi's network, with a Download Speed Experience of 12.8 Mbps. While our Vi users saw their average download speeds increase by 0.9 Mbps since our last report, their counterparts on Airtel and Jio were the only ones who saw greater improvements in Download Speed Experience.
Our Airtel users saw their average speeds grow by 1.9 Mbps to 12.4 Mbps and our Jio users experienced a boost of 5 Mbps with speeds averaging 12.1 Mbps. As a result, Vi's lead over Airtel had shrunk from 1.4 Mbps to 0.4 Mbps, while that over Jio has declined by a significant 4.1 Mbps to 0.7 Mbps. If this continues, Vi could soon be challenged by one of two close rival operators. However, BSNL continues to lag way behind, with users reporting significantly lower download speeds (3.4 Mbps), on average, compared to other national operators.
|
Download Speed Experience
Additional Metrics |
A
Airtel
|
B
BSNL
|
J
Jio
|
V
Vi
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| in Mbps | ||||
|
4G Download Speed
| 12.4 (± 0.02) | 4.2 (± 0.06) | 12.1 (± 0.02) | 13.4 (± 0.03) |
|
3G Download Speed
| 5.0 (± 0.19) | 3.1 (± 0.03) | — | 4.0 (± 0.03) |
| 4G Download Speed | in Mbps |
|
A
Airtel
|
12 (± 0.02) |
|
B
BSNL
|
4 (± 0.06) |
|
J
Jio
|
12 (± 0.02) |
|
V
Vi
|
13 (± 0.03) |
| 3G Download Speed | in Mbps |
|
A
Airtel
|
5 (± 0.19) |
|
B
BSNL
|
3 (± 0.03) |
|
J
Jio
|
— |
|
V
Vi
|
4 (± 0.03) |
When we look at Download Speed Experience by technology, the 4G Download Speed results mirrored our overall scores; our Vi users saw the highest average download speeds of 13.4 Mbps, while Airtel and Jio follow behind with scores of 12.4 Mbps and 12.1 Mbps, respectively.
We saw tight competition in Upload Speed Experience as well, with only 0.5-1.0 Mbps separating the big three operators — Airtel, Jio and Vi. While Vi held on to our Upload Speed Experience award with a score of 4.3 Mbps, its lead fell by 0.4 Mbps to 0.5 Mbps, Airtel and Jio followed closely behind with scores of 3.8 Mbps and 3.2 Mbps, respectively. Since our last report, our Airtel and Jio users reported improvements in their average upload speeds — 0.3 Mbps and 0.8 Mbps, respectively — unlike Vi users, who saw their average speeds decline by 0.2 Mbps.
|
Upload Speed Experience
Additional Metrics |
A
Airtel
|
B
BSNL
|
J
Jio
|
V
Vi
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| in Mbps | ||||
|
4G Upload Speed
| 3.8 (± 0.01) | 1.8 (± 0.03) | 3.3 (± 0.01) | 4.5 (± 0.01) |
|
3G Upload Speed
| 1.5 (± 0.09) | 1.0 (± 0.01) | — | 1.2 (± 0.01) |
| 4G Upload Speed | in Mbps |
|
A
Airtel
|
4 (± 0.01) |
|
B
BSNL
|
2 (± 0.03) |
|
J
Jio
|
3 (± 0.01) |
|
V
Vi
|
5 (± 0.01) |
| 3G Upload Speed | in Mbps |
|
A
Airtel
|
1 (± 0.09) |
|
B
BSNL
|
1 (± 0.01) |
|
J
Jio
|
— |
|
V
Vi
|
1 (± 0.01) |
Usually, download speeds receive more attention, but upload speeds are also becoming an increasing aspect of users' mobile network experience, with changing usage patterns and consumption habits. For example, mobile users now engage more on social media apps — creating and sharing high-resolution images and videos — which gives operators with the fastest upload speeds a distinct advantage.
India's 4G-only operator Jio once again claims our 4G Availability award. The average proportion of time that our Jio users spent connected to 4G has increased by a small amount — 0.2 percentage points — since our last report to reach an impressive score of 99.3%. Meanwhile, Airtel and Vi's 4G Availability scores have both grown by 0.4 percentage points to 97.8% and 89.6%, respectively. Finally, BSNL's 4G Availability score improved by 0.7 percentage points to 61.8%.
Jio also remains top on 4G Coverage Experience. The operator's score increased slightly by 0.1 points to 9.4 points and now leads over second-placed Airtel by 1.6 points — down from 1.8 seen in the previous report due to a greater increase of 0.2 points to 7.8 points reported by our Airtel users. Meanwhile, Vi and BSNL's scores increased by 0.1 points, with scores of 6.2 and 2.6 points respectively.
While Opensignal's 4G Availability measures the proportion of time users spent connected to 4G, our 4G Coverage Experience metric measures how mobile subscribers experience 4G coverage on an operator's network. Measured on a scale of 0-10, it analyzes the locations where customers of a network operator received a 4G signal relative to the locations visited by users of all network operators.
Our regional analysis delves deeper to assess how mobile network experience varies across the 22 telecom circles of India. Our results highlight how our users' experience on India's four national networks – Airtel, BSNL, Jio and Vi – compare, depending on the circles they are located in and the type of service offered by operators in those circles.
In our analysis of regional Video Experience, the national winner of Video Experience, Jio, achieves outright wins in 11 circles and jointly wins in a further three circles — alongside Airtel in Gujarat and Jammu and Kashmir, and alongside Vi in Kolkata (metro circle). It was noteworthy that across all regions, our Jio users in Haryana were the only ones to enjoy a Very Good (65-75) Video Experience — one rating higher compared to the national Video Experience of Jio users. The remaining regional awards for this measure were spread between Airtel and Vi. While Airtel wins in Bihar, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh (West), Vi solely tops in Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Mumbai (metro circle) and West Bengal.
Airtel's national dominance on Games Experience is reflected in our regional results; the operator wins in 10 circles outright and collects joint wins in a further three circles with Vi: Karnataka, North-East and Orissa. Vi also wins in six regions outright, while Jio wins in the remaining three circles, including Delhi (metro circle), Haryana, and Punjab.
In regional Voice App Experience — the experience of our users when using voice apps over mobile networks — the national winner Airtel collects the most outright wins at the regional level. It wins outright in 12 circles: Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerela, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh (both East and West). The operator also shares joint wins with other operators in a further two circles.
Vi still takes home the lion’s share of regional wins for Download Speed Experience, but its share of outright wins has dropped since the previous Opensignal report. The operator wins in 10 circles outright for regional Download Speed Experience compared to 13 circles last time around. Meanwhile, Jio collects six outright wins, and Airtel is the sole winner in five circles, including Uttar Pradesh (West), where Airtel users enjoyed the fastest regional download speeds of 16.5 Mbps. And in Upload Speed Experience, Vi users saw the fastest average speeds in 15 circles, while their peers on Airtel and Jio saw the same in four and three circles, respectively.
Turning to 4G Availability, Jio tops in all 22 circles, largely because Jio offers 4G-only services, unlike other national operators. That said, our Airtel users experienced more than 96% 4G Availability in each of the circles — up by 0.9 percentage points since our last report.
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Collecting billions of individual measurements daily from over 100 million devices globally, Opensignal independently analyzes mobile user experience on every major network operator around the globe.
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