Preferential treatment of subscribers raises questions about principles of equal digital ecosystem: Vodafone Idea

India’s third-largest telecom operator, Vodafone Idea (Vi), said Thursday that offering preferential speeds or services to subscribers raises questions about the principles of an equal digital ecosystem.

“India’s digital growth has been built on the foundation of affordable and connectivity for all. At Vi, we strongly believe that every customer deserves a fair and consistent network experience,” Avneesh Khosla, chief marketing officer (CMO) at Vi, said in a statement.

“Offering preferential speeds or services based on user profile raises questions around equity and principles of an equal digital ecosystem,” the Vi executive said.

The telco, with nearly 192 million subscribers, has also launched an aggressive campaign assuring its prepaid and postpaid subscribers that they will continue to receive equal priority and treatment.

The telco’s customer care handle on the microblogging platform X said that Vi is continuously strengthening its network, including adding over 2.2 lakh new towers, expanding 5G in over 110 cities, and deploying AI-based self-optimising network technology to deliver strong connectivity even in crowded areas.

Vi’s challenge comes days after its rival, Bharti Airtel, launched a fifth-generation (5G) network slicing-enabled “Postpaid Priority” service in India. However, Airtel’s offering has come under the government’s scrutiny after a section of stakeholders raised concerns about potential violation of net neutrality principles.

The Sunil Mittal-driven telco has strongly defended the move, saying it was a technology upgrade that makes the overall network more efficient and enhances the quality of service for postpaid subscribers.

The Priority Postpaid service is bundled with Airtel’s postpaid plans, and starts at ₹449, offering additional OTT subscriptions, cloud storage, and family benefits.

Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio had separately said that network slicing-backed service deployments are a “lawful exercise” for 5G network capabilities, and the regulatory framework allows such offerings.

Vi’s top executive contended that for India to continue its digital growth, even as the technology advances, innovation and monetisation models need to “keep the interests of all customers paramount, be transparent and most of all remain inclusive”.

Jio, in a letter to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), said that different slices for different business classes or verticals meet net neutrality requirements. Meanwhile, Airtel said that the ‘Priority Postpaid’ plan is implemented in a “content-neutral manner” and is fully consistent with the existing regulatory framework.

“There is no blocking, throttling, content-specific prioritisation, zero-rating, or preferential treatment of any application,” Airtel has said.