Airtel launches 'Priority Postpaid' with a 'slicing' tech: Check the 5G plans

Bharti Airtel, India’s second-largest telecom operator, on Tuesday launched “Priority Postpaid”, a new service aimed at improving network experience for postpaid users through 5G slicing technology, as the company sharpens its focus on premium consumers seeking uninterrupted connectivity during high-traffic situations.

The company said the service has been designed for customers who rely heavily on stable mobile connectivity for work calls, streaming, online collaboration and daily digital usage, especially in crowded or congested environments.

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With the launch, Airtel has upgraded its 5G network with slicing capabilities that intelligently segment network capacity to prioritise postpaid users, enabling more stable and dependable connectivity even during periods of high network demand.

The launch marks the first deployment of slicing-based 5G services in India, according to the company. Similar services have already been introduced in countries including the US, Singapore, the UK and Malaysia.

“Our focus at Airtel is on delivering meaningful innovations that enhance our customers' experience. Priority Postpaid is our latest innovation powered by the 5G slicing technology. It provides a superior, more reliable, and dependable experience to our customers — whether they are attending a client call in traffic, or streaming at a packed concert, or booking a cab in a crowded market," Shashwat Sharma, MD and CEO, Airtel India said.

"Airtel Priority Postpaid is available on all our Postpaid plans. If you are already on postpaid, you will start enjoying the benefit automatically. If you are currently prepaid, you can upgrade your existing plan to postpaid by visiting the Airtel App," he said at an event on Thursday.

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The telecom operator said the upgraded network architecture makes the system more efficient by creating additional capacity and enabling targeted allocation of resources to priority users. Airtel said this would help maintain service quality in situations where conventional mobile networks often face congestion.

"Many of you have told us how you sometimes struggle to make that video call or download an email or upload a photo in a crowded market, a traffic jam or an event. This is a problem that we have been keen to solve. That's why we have launched Airtel Priority Postpaid. Airtel Priority Postpaid is specially designed to give you a consistent experience even in congested areas," Sharma said.

Priority service will be available across all Airtel postpaid plans, with existing users set to receive the benefits automatically. Prepaid users can migrate to the new service through the Airtel app or by visiting Airtel stores, the company said.

Plan	Type	Key benefits	Additional content benefits
Rs 449 + GST	Individual	Priority on 5G with Fastlane technology, fraud detection and spam alerts, unlimited data and calling, 3000 SMS	Airtel Xstream Play, Adobe Express Premium, 100 GB cloud storage
Rs 699 + GST	Family of 2	All benefits of Rs 449 plan	Amazon Prime, JioHotstar
Rs 999 + GST	Family of 3	All benefits of lower plans	Apple TV+, Apple Music
Rs 1,199 + GST	Family of 4	Priority services and bundled benefits	Expanded family sharing benefits
Rs 1,749 + GST	Family of 5	All benefits of premium plans	Netflix

The telco major added that customers can access the Priority service on compatible 5G standalone-enabled smartphones running the latest software version. Users awaiting software upgrades will receive notifications in the settings section of their devices, while device compatibility can also be checked through the Airtel app.