That exceeded the Rs282 crore profit estimate of eight analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. More From Livemint »The better-than-expected Q1 results was partly because pressure eased on Airtel after Reliance Jio started charging customers in April, after offering services for free for almost six months. The reprieve for incumbent operators is likely to be temporary as Reliance Industries Ltd chairman Mukesh Ambani has doubled down on his telecom bet by offering free 4G handsets to Reliance Jio users. It blamed Reliance Jio for the stress on its financials. Increased competition from Reliance Jio has forced operators to boost spending on their network to deliver faster data services.

Source: Mint July 25, 2017 12:16 UTC