RCOM's current operating challenges could impact Jio in the medium term.
In addition to leasing towers and fiber from RCOM, Jio has a spectrum-sharing deal in the high-value 800MHz band. Our analysis of spectrum holdings suggests that the sharing deal is crucial in six high-value markets where Jio holds less than the 5MHz spectrum which is the minimum required bandwidth of its LTE network. These markets collectively account of c.45% of industry revenues.
Furthermore, RCOM's 43K towers account for c.40% of Jio network sites. RCOM's fiber network also provides the significant backhaul capacity which has been a key competitive lever as it has allowed Jio to provide large data bundles to attract subscribers.
