According to Ravinder Takkar, CEO and MD of Vodafone Idea, the company sees digital in a way that differs from that of other operators.

As the company can't match rivals Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel's CAPEX spends, the company is relying on partnerships to boost its average revenue per user (Arpu).

Vodafone Idea announced it would not develop its digital assets, instead opting for a partnership approach in which digital companies' diverse services are deeply integrated into its Vi platform. The strategy differs significantly from that of rivals Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio, which have developed a considerable number of digital assets that may be used by users of other telecom companies.

According to Ravinder Takkar, CEO and MD of Vodafone Idea, the company approaches digital in a slightly different way than other operators. "In our country, we have a lot of digital players who are adept at producing a variety of services." There is suspicion that my objective is to compete with them. It's clear to us that we don't want to be in their company; they're good at what they do, and we're good at what we do. As a result, there's a chance for us to collaborate and complement each other," Takkar said.

Reliance Jio, on the other hand, has built various digital assets in-house, including Jio TV, Jio Cinema, and Jio Saavn, as well as investing in several start-ups through Jio Platforms. Analysts estimate that Jio Platforms' digital assets are worth billions of dollars. Similarly, Bharti Airtel has created several digital assets, including the Xtream and Mitra apps, as well as the Airtel IQ SaaS platform, the Airtel marketplace, and its ad-tech platform. Airtel anticipates its digital products in the fields of cloud, cyber security, data centers, Cpass, and other areas to generate billions of dollars in income over the next few years.

Takkar said the company began using the partnership concept a year ago and has begun to see results. "I have a customer base of 245 million people, some of whom use digital services and others who don't." So, to generate stickiness, I'd like to introduce them to digital services. It allows us to work in an atmosphere where I can deeply integrate their (digital player) applications into my network, rather than competing with them," he said.

For instance, to provide employment and skilling possibilities to its members, the organization has worked with start-ups such as Apna, Enguru, and Pariksha. It has teamed with Nazara Technologies for online gaming. Vi Ads, the company's ad-tech platform, was created in collaboration with TorcAi.

Because it can't match rivals Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel's CAPEX spends, the company is relying on partnerships to boost its average revenue per user (Arpu).