Reliance Jio users opting to switch to the new Prime membership faced difficulties as the telecom operator was unable to cope with the huge demand. There are over 100 million RJio users currently, who have to either switch to the new plan or give up their connection.
A number of users complained that they could not switch over to the new plan. An executive working in a RJio store said the demand from users was so high that the servers that manage customer billing were running to capacity. "It should ease up in a day or two. Initially, there could be issues but these are just teething problems," the executive said.
Reliance Jio has been offering free services to users since September. But from today onwards it will start charging Rs 303 per month and a one-time fee of Rs 99. Users will get 30GB data per month for a year, with a cap of 1GB per day. Even new users who subscribe before March 31 can avail of this scheme.
Reliance Jio users can enroll for the Prime programme via the MyJio app or by visiting the nearest retail outlet. "Most of the stores owned by Reliance are equipped with enough capacity to handle the rush. The problem could be in the third-party owned, smaller stores," said another executive.
A Mumbai-based user said he could switch easily as he stayed up late at night to subscribe to the new plan.