Vodafone Idea is an Indian
telecommunications company
A telecommunications company is a kind of electronic communications service provider, more precisely a telecommunications service provider (TSP), that provides telecommunications services such as telephony and data communications access. Many t ...
, headquartered in
Gandhinagar
Gandhinagar () is the capital of the state of Gujarat in India. Gandhinagar is located approximately 23 km north of Ahmedabad, on the west central point of the industrial corridor between the megacities of Delhi and Mumbai.
Gandhinagar ...
. It is an all-India integrated
GSM
The Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) is a family of standards to describe the protocols for second-generation (2G) digital cellular networks, as used by mobile devices such as mobile phones and Mobile broadband modem, mobile broadba ...
operator offering
mobile telephony
Mobile telephony is the provision of wireless telephone services to mobile phones, distinguishing it from fixed-location telephony provided via landline phones. Traditionally, telephony specifically refers to voice communication, though th ...
services.
As of 30 September 2024, Vi has a subscriber base of 212.45 million,
making it
third largest mobile telecommunications network in India and
12th largest mobile telecommunications network in the world.
Vodafone Idea was created on 31 August 2018 by the
merger
Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of a company, business organization, or one of their operating units is transferred to or consolidated with another entity. They may happen through direct absorpt ...
of
Vodafone India
Vodafone India was the India, Indian Subsidiary company, subsidiary of United Kingdom, UK-based Vodafone Group and was a Internet Service Provider, provider of Telecommunications service, telecommunications services in India with its operationa ...
and
Idea Cellular
Idea Cellular was an Indian telecommunications company based at Mumbai, Maharashtra. It was an integrated GSM operator and had 220.00 million subscribers as of June 2018.
In 2018 Idea Cellular merged with Vodafone India into Vodafone ...
. On 20 September 2020, the two separate brands Vodafone India and Idea Cellular
rebranded
Rebranding is a marketing strategy in which a new name, term, symbol, design, concept or combination thereof is created for an established brand with the intention of developing a new, differentiated identity in the minds of consumers, investors ...
as Vodafone Idea (Vi).
History
In March 2017, it was announced that
Vodafone India
Vodafone India was the India, Indian Subsidiary company, subsidiary of United Kingdom, UK-based Vodafone Group and was a Internet Service Provider, provider of Telecommunications service, telecommunications services in India with its operationa ...
and
Idea Cellular
Idea Cellular was an Indian telecommunications company based at Mumbai, Maharashtra. It was an integrated GSM operator and had 220.00 million subscribers as of June 2018.
In 2018 Idea Cellular merged with Vodafone India into Vodafone ...
would
merge.
The merger got approval from the
Department of Telecommunications
The Department of Telecommunications, abbreviated to DoT, is a department of the Ministry of Communications of the executive branch of the Government of India
The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union ...
in July 2018. On 30 August 2018,
National Company Law Tribunal
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) is a quasi-judicial body in India that adjudicates issues relating to Indian companies. The tribunal, established under the Companies Act 2013, was constituted on 1 June 2016 by the government of India a ...
gave the final nod to the Vodafone-Idea merger.
It was completed on 31 August 2018, and the new entity was named Vodafone Idea.
Under the terms of the deal, the
Vodafone Group Plc
Vodafone Group Public Limited Company () is a British Multinational company, multinational telecommunications company. Its registered office and global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It predominantly operates Service (economic ...
held a 45.2% stake in the combined entity, the
Aditya Birla Group
Aditya Birla Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. The group's business interests include metals, cement, fashion and retail, financial services, renewables, fibre, textiles, chemicals, real estate, trading, ...
held 26% and the remaining
shares
In financial markets, a share (sometimes referred to as stock or equity) is a unit of equity ownership in the capital stock of a corporation. It can refer to units of mutual funds, limited partnerships, and real estate investment trusts. Sha ...
were to be held by the public.
Vodafone Idea lost a significant number of gross and active subscribers in the month of August 2020.
Until 7 September 2020, Vodafone Idea operated two separate brands:
Vodafone India and Idea Cellular who both operated pre-paid and post-paid
GSM
The Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) is a family of standards to describe the protocols for second-generation (2G) digital cellular networks, as used by mobile devices such as mobile phones and Mobile broadband modem, mobile broadba ...
service.
On 3 February 2023, the
Government of India
The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...
ordered the
company
A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...
to convert its
interest
In finance and economics, interest is payment from a debtor or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distinct f ...
dues worth 161.33 billion
Indian Rupees
The Indian rupee (Currency symbol, symbol: Indian rupee sign, ₹; ISO 4217, code: INR) is the official currency of India. The rupee is subdivided into 100 ''Indian paisa, paise'' (Hindi plural; singular: ''paisa''). The issuance of the currenc ...
($1.96 billion) to
equity at the rate of 10 rupees per share face value (well over then market value ~8.5), thus making the government the single biggest
shareholder
A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of corporate stock refers to an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the ...
in the company.
In March 2025, the Government of India further raised its stake to 48.99% by acquiring additional shares worth ₹36,950 crore ($4.5 billion).
Network
Spectrum frequency holding summary
Vodafone Idea owns spectrum in 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3500 MHz and 26 GHz bands across the
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...
.
This table contains Vodafone Idea radio frequency details because they had integrated their networks with each other and using one anchor network for both brands in all respective telecom circles. For example, Idea has started 4G services in
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...
and
Kolkata
Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...
telecom circle from May 2018 where the Vodafone is anchor network vice versa Vodafone has Started 4G services in
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...
&
Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh (; ) is a landlocked States and union territories of India, state in Central India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the List ...
,
Bihar
Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
&
Jharkhand
Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
,
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
&
Telangana
Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...
,
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...
and
Jammu and Kashmir telecom Circle's where Idea is Anchor network. In March 2025, Vodafone Idea (Vi) launched its 5G services in Mumbai.
Network consolidation
By March 2019, Vodafone Idea announced its network consolidation across major circles, easing network issues faced by consumers and also enhancing its 4G coverage. Announcements of Network Consolidation were made as below:
Enhanced Unified (2G, 3G, and 4G) coverage details
Enhanced (4G) coverage details
Vi Movies & TV
As of September 2023, Vi Movies & TV app is currently available for Vi subscribers on
Android (above
Android 5.1) and
iOS
Ios, Io or Nio (, ; ; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about long an ...
devices (
10.0 and above versions).
See also
*
Aditya Birla Group
Aditya Birla Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. The group's business interests include metals, cement, fashion and retail, financial services, renewables, fibre, textiles, chemicals, real estate, trading, ...
*
American Tower Corporation
American Tower Corporation (also referred to as American Tower or ATC) is an American real estate investment trust which owns, develops and operates wireless and broadcast communications infrastructure in several countries. It is headquartered ...
*
Idea Cellular
Idea Cellular was an Indian telecommunications company based at Mumbai, Maharashtra. It was an integrated GSM operator and had 220.00 million subscribers as of June 2018.
In 2018 Idea Cellular merged with Vodafone India into Vodafone ...
*
Vodafone
Vodafone Group Public Limited Company () is a British Multinational company, multinational telecommunications company. Its registered office and global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It predominantly operates Service (economic ...
*
Vodafone Belvedere Towers metro station
*
Vodafone India
Vodafone India was the India, Indian Subsidiary company, subsidiary of United Kingdom, UK-based Vodafone Group and was a Internet Service Provider, provider of Telecommunications service, telecommunications services in India with its operationa ...
References
External links
*
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