Valentine is here, telcos play the love game on twitter
Fiercest rivals of the Indian telecom industry shared messages on the Valentine's Day, with twitter playing the cupid.
For once, 'love is in the air' among the fiercest rivals of the Indian telecom industry on the Valentine's Day, with twitter playing the cupid. Taking a break from the constant sparring over offering of free calls and inter-connectivity, Reliance Jio, Airtel, Idea Cellular and Aircel found time for a light hearted moment on the social media site to wish each other on the day, of course through their own slogans.
It all started with newbie Reliance Jio wishing main rivals Airtel, Vodafone and Idea with a tweet: "Dear @airtelindia, @VodafoneIN, @ideacellular, Happy Valentine's Day. #WithLoveFromJio".
In six hours, it was retweeted over 3,000 times and received 4,000 likes.
Airtel didn't take long to respond. "Same feels @reliancejio! After all #HarEkFriendZarooriHotaHai?? @VodafoneIN @ideacellular" it replied. Idea was pleasantly surprised. "@reliancejio Same to you! Nice to know that love is in the air today. @airtelindia @VodafoneIN," it responded.
Aircel also didn't let the chance to flirt with Idea on the day. "Sirji, somewhere, somehow we ended up creating the 'biggest small change' in the lives of millions. #TogetherConnectingHearts @IdeaCellular," it tweeted.
Idea's response wasn't with a bouquet of roses but with a matured thought: "@aircel, together we were able to "do a little extra" out of love for a billion Indians!"
In real life there is no love lost between the rivals, specially between Reliance Jio and the rest as the new entrant's free service has hit financials of incumbents. It has changed the market dynamics to such an extent that even a marriage proposal between Vodafone and Idea is now on the cards.
Vodafone India had posted lower profit while Idea Cellular posted its first ever quarterly loss in the period ended December 31, 2016. Airtel has also suffered it with its profit reduced by more than half thanks to free 4G services by Reliance Jio.
Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea have filed complaints against Reliance Jio in various forums including the Department of Telecom and sector regulator Trai. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has recommended Rs 3,050 crore cumulative penalty on the trio on complaint filed by Jio.