Jio Platforms

Jio Platforms is an Indian multinational technology company, headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is a subsidiary of Reliance Industries. Established in 2019, it acts as a holding company for India's largest mobile network operator, Jio, and other digital businesses of Reliance.

Since April 2020, Reliance Industries has raised ₹152,056 crore (US$18 billion) by selling 32.97% equity stake in the company. In August 2021, it was ranked 155th on the 2021 Fortune Global 500 list of world's biggest corporations.

History

Jio soft launched on 27 December 2015 with a beta for partners and employees, and became publicly available on 5 September 2016. It is the largest mobile network operator in India and the third largest mobile network operator in the world with over 42.62 crore (426.2 million) subscribers.

In September 2019, Jio launched a fiber to the home service, offering home broadband, television, and telephone services. As of September 2020, Reliance Industries has raised ₹1.65 lakh crore (equivalent to ₹1.9 trillion or US$23 billion in 2023) by selling nearly 33% equity stake in Jio Platforms.

Later continuing as RIL’s telecom subsidiary, Infotel Broadband Services Limited was renamed as Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited (RJIL) in January 2013.

In 2014, Reliance Jio Infocomm, the 4G LTE venture of Reliance Industries (RIL), has picked up stake in Israeli telecom network vendor Airspan Networks. Reliance Jio will also source 4G LTE towers from Airspan to deploy 4G services.

In October 2019, Reliance Industries (RI) announced the creation of a wholly owned subsidiary for its digital businesses including Jio. In November 2019, the subsidiary was named Jio Platforms. The ₹1.08 trillion (US$13 billion) liability of Jio was transferred to RIL and in turn RIL received preferential shares of Jio Platforms. According to some observers, the restructuring was done to keep the digital businesses of the group within a debt-free entity.

In April 2020, Facebook acquired a 9.99% stake in Jio Platforms for ₹435.74 billion (US$5.2 billion). According to this deal, while Jio Platforms retained ₹149.76 billion (US$1.8 billion), the parent company got the remaining ₹285.98 billion (US$3.4 billion) for redeeming the optionally convertible preference shares it held in the subsidiary.

In May 2020, private equity firm Silver Lake Investors obtained a 1.15% stake with a ₹56.5 billion (US$680 million) investment in the company. But unlike the previous transaction, the entire investment in this case was retained by Jio Platforms. General Atlantic then announced that it would invest ₹65.988 billion (US$790 million) in Jio Platforms for a 1.34% stake in the company. American private equity firm KKR acquired a 2.32% stake in Jio Platforms for ₹113.67 billion (US$1.4 billion).

In June 2020, Emirati sovereign fund Mubadala confirmed that it would acquire a 1.85% stake in the company for ₹90.936 billion (US$1.1 billion). Silver Lake increased its stake to 2.08% with an additional ₹45.47 billion (US$540 million) investment. Abu Dhabi Investment Authority then bought a 1.16% stake in the company for ₹56.84 billion (US$680 million). On 13 June, TPG took stake in Jio Platforms of 0.93% worth ₹45.468 billion (US$540 million). L Catterton also made an investment of ₹18.945 billion (US$230 million) for a 0.39% stake.

In June 2020, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund confirmed that it would acquire a 2.32% stake in the company for ₹113.67 billion (US$1.4 billion). In July 2020, Intel confirmed that it would acquire a 0.39% stake in the company for ₹1.89 billion (US$23 million). In July 2020, Qualcomm confirmed that it would acquire a 0.15% stake in the company for ₹7.30 billion (US$87 million). This was followed by Google purchase of 7.7% stake in the company for ₹337.37 billion (US$4.0 billion).

In June 2021, Jio Platforms unveiled their Android smartphone named JioPhone Next, with plans to launch in India by September 2021.

In February 2022, Jio Platforms formed a joint venture with satellite operator SES. The newly formed Jio Space Technology Limited will deliver broadband services in India of up to 100 Gbit/s capacity using SES's SES-12 high-throughput geostationary satellite and the forthcoming O3b mPOWER medium Earth orbit satellite constellation, to extend JPL's terrestrial network, enhancing access to digital services in unconnected areas within India and the region. JPL and SES will own 51% and 49% equity stake respectively in the new company.

In December 2023, Jio Studios decided to back out of producing upcoming Akshay Kumar movies Hera Pheri 3 and Welcome to the Jungle.

Businesses

Consumer platforms

• Jio, telecommunications and broadband services
• Jio Apps
  • MyJio
  • JioTV, live TV streaming app
  • JioSaavn, an online music streaming service
  • JioChat, messaging app
  • JioMeet, video-conferencing platform
  • JioStore, app store for Jio STB
  • JioGamesCloud, Jio's cloud gaming service
  • JioPages, web browser
  • JioPay, digital payments and financial services app
  • JioSwitch, file sharing app
  • JioNews, newspaper and magazine app
  • JioHome, mobile remote control for Jio set-top box
  • JioGate, apartment security app
  • JioCloud, cloud storage services
  • JioSecurity, security app
  • JioHealthHub, health companion
  • JioPOS Lite, Jio recharge commission earning app
  • JioGameslite, online gaming
• JioMoney, digital currency and payments services
• JioMart, online grocery delivery services (partnership with Reliance Retail)
• JioSign, online digital signing platform

Enterprise platforms

• JioAttendance
• JioMeet for Business
• JioOnline, online marketing tool
• JioGST

Acquisitions and investments

RIL has acquired or invested in several companies, which are now under Jio Platforms:

Valuation

In 2020, the enterprise value of Jio Platforms was estimated to be ₹5 trillion (US$60 billion). The company was also reported to be more valuable than all other businesses of RIL put together. Its market capitalization put it fourth on the list of largest Indian companies, behind RIL (combined entity), Tata Consultancy Services and HDFC Bank.

In January 2024, Bank of America increased their valuation to US$107 billion.

See also

• List of telecom companies in India
• List of companies of India

References

Further reading

• "Mukesh Ambani buys 38.5% in Extramarks Education". business-standard.com. New Delhi. Press Trust of India. 21 January 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2023.

External links

• Official website