FTTH or FWA? Airtel, Jio take opposing views on which service to offer

Unlike Jio, Airtel won't go for FWA unless the cost of 5G routers dips below $50

The country’s two top telcos, Airtel and Reliance Jio, have taken opposing views on whether to go for 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) broadband or stick to fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) to provide high-speed broadband to millions of Indian households. 

While Airtel believes that FTTH is still the best bet in terms of cost economics, Reliance Jio yesterday not only announced its decision to offer FWA, but also set an ambitious target of reaching 100 million homes through it. Two years after its FTTH rollout, Jio has managed to get only 7 million households in its kitty.

Sources in the know say