Reliance Jio SIM to be available free on ShopClues

Online marketplace ShopClues has collaborated with Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd for its 'Jio Welcome Offer', becoming the first e-commerce player to do so. On the purchase of Lenovo, Micromax, Asus, Panasonic, HTC, Samsung, and Intex smartphones from ShopClues, customers can get a free Jio SIM card from any Reliance Digital/ Digital Xpress/ Digital Xpress Mini store. All subscribers under this ‘Jio Welcome Offer’ can avail discounts on the purchase of 4G smartphones.

Launched a few weeks ago, Reliance Jio is a premium low cost data service. Users will have unlimited access to HD voice calls (on Jio eligible VOLTE phones), messaging, video calls, high-speed data, and access to Jio’s suite of apps till December 31, 2016.

At the launch, Nitin Sharma, Sr. Director — Category, ShopClues, said, “We believe that our association with Reliance Jio will help users to fully unlock the potential of their smartphones and experience 4G like never before. The bold tariff offers, free voice calls, and instant call connect, amongst other features, have caught the attention of Indian customers nation-wide and they are eager to get access to high-speed and unlimited data for free. Reliance Jio has indeed taken the telecom market by storm in a short span and our partnership will help us pass on its incredible value-driven services to our large and loyal customer base.”

Timing advantage

ShopClues’ offer comes at a time when aspiring users are finding it hard to get the Jio SIM. In fact, Reliance Jio SIMs were reportedly available on the New Delhi black market for twice the original price or above. Additionally, according to TRAI rules, SIM cards shall be issued only with address proof. However, it has been reported that due to lack of registration forms, Jio users are getting the SIM by producing their Aadhar cards. This offer lets ShopClues leverage the disparity in the supply-demand equation reigning at the moment.

Reliance Jio was on trial for about eight months exclusively on RIL’s LYF smartphones. But now that Jio is open to everyone, LYF sales have been declining. Although Jio claims to be the only mobile network in the country that is only 4G LTE, recent reports suggest drop in speed with the number of users rising.