Qualcomm has been the newest high-profile sponsor of four-year-old Reliance Jio Platforms, collecting over $15.7 billion from almost as many investors over the last 12 weeks.
On Sunday night, Qualcomm Ventures announced it would spend $97 million in Reliance Jio Platforms to buy a “fully diluted” 0.15 percent equity share in the largest Indian telecom operator. Qualcomm said it will enable Jio Platforms to “phase out Indian customers’ innovative 5G network and services.”
While competing with Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea in India, Reliance Jio Platforms has disrupted the Indian telecommunications market by offering cut-rate voice and data plans. It has accrued nearly 400 million users in fewer than four years of its existence to become the biggest carrier in the world’s second-largest internet market.
Its dominance in the Indian telecommunications operator while maintaining an ARPU (average revenue per user) that matches those of its rivals has made Reliance Jio Platforms — a subsidiary of Reliance Industries, India’s most valued company — an attractive company for a roster of high profile investors. Silver Beach, General Ocean, Facebook, Intel are some of the businesses that backed Jio Projects at the time of a global pandemic. During the time, Jio Platforms sold a 25.24 percent stake in the firm.
The Reliance Industries business unit also runs a variety of entertainment platforms including music streaming live Broadcast outlets, and movies and TV shows. The Indian corporation launched a new feature to its arsenal earlier this month: A video conferencing device.
Steve Mollenkopf, Qualcomm’s chief executive, said the company expects that Reliance Jio Apps will “provide a new range of offerings and opportunities for Indian customers” in the future.
“We are looking forward to playing a role in Jio’s vision as an enabler and investor with a long-standing presence in India to further revolutionize India’s digital economy, “he said in a statement.
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In recent months, some analysts have told TechCrunch that the owner of Reliance Jio Platforms — India ‘s wealthiest guy, Mukesh Ambani — and his connections to India ‘s governing political party are both keys to why the Reliance Industries wireless company is so appealing to others. We think purchasing a stake in Jio Platforms will reduce the regulatory pressure we are currently facing in India. The participants called for anonymity because they did not want to comment openly about the political tie-ups.
Conclusion:
A person familiar with the matter at one of the 12 companies that backed Reliance Jio Platforms said the Indian company is also intriguing as global companies are trying to reduce their reliance on China and exposure to it.
