Despite issues related to interconnection with other telecom operators, Reliance Jio has notched up 16 million subscribers in the first month of operations. The company had launched its services in September with a welcome offer of free data and voice services until December.

Reliance Jio said it has created a world record as it has achieved this growth faster than any other telecom operator or start-up in the world, including the likes of Facebook, WhatsApp and Skype.

Mukesh D Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Industries , said, “We are delighted and humbled by the overwhelming response across India to the Jio Welcome Offer. Jio is built to empower every Indian with the power of data...”

Jio has introduced Aadhaar-based paper-less Jio SIM activation across 3,100 cities and towns. This enables the customer to complete the SIM activation process in a matter of minutes.

Initially, the company could not handle the heavy rush of people wanting to grab the freebies. While this has eased up in most retail locations, the waiting list continues in some areas.

RJio users are also facing network issues, mostly due to lack of adequate interconnection with other operators. While operators, including Airtel, Vodafone and Idea, have released more interconnections, there are still some choke points.

Analysts said that though RJio has managed to attract customers with the free offer, the real numbers would emerge when the users have to start paying for services.

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