After investing in Reliance Jio, Google is all set to invest $1 million, which is close to Rs. 7,500 crores into Airtel. This investment will be part of the Google for India Digitisation Fund that was launched in 2020. Google is investing in the telecom operator in exchange for 1.28 percent ownership and $300 million will be part of the potential for the agreement between both players.
“As a part of its first commercial agreement, Airtel and Google will work together to build on Airtel’s extensive offerings that cover a range of Android-enabled devices to consumers via innovative affordability programs,” said Bharti Airtel in a release.
It is worth noting that Reliance Jio joined hands with Google to bring 4G and 5G devices at affordable prices. However, it is expected that Airtel and Google phones might come as a blow to the JioPhone Next.
Airtel has not announced anything on the ways Google will support them to reach deeper into the market, but still, there are chances that India’s second-largest telecom operator Airtel might go against Reliance Jio.
“Airtel and Google share the vision to grow India’s digital dividend through innovative products. With our future-ready network, digital platforms, last-mile distribution, and payments ecosystem, we look forward to working closely with Google to increase the depth and breadth of India’s digital ecosystem,” Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman of Bharti Airtel said.
The partnership will enable India’s second-largest telecom operator to grow and shape its cloud ecosystem in the country. For the unaware, the telecom operator is providing its services to one million small and medium businesses along with enterprise connectivity offerings.
“Our commercial and equity investment in Airtel is a continuation of our Google for India Digitization Fund’s efforts to increase access to smartphones, enhance connectivity to support new business models, and help companies on their digital transformation journey,” Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet said.
