Reliance Retail, part of the Reliance Industries group said in a statement on Friday that the company would soon release its own 4G LTE handsets under the brand name “Lyf”. The statement said that the devices released under the brand will provide unmatched true 4G experience comparable to the best of the world.
Mobile market analysts said that the move from Reliance was to cash in from the increasing trend of 4G in India. It must be noted that the E-commerce giant Flipkart has sold over 5 lakh 4G LTE enabled smartphones in just ten hours, which describes the demand and the craze for new technology in India.
Lyf range of smartphones from Reliance will come with features like voice over LTE (VoLTE), voice over Wi-Fi (VoWi-FI), as well as HD voice and HD quality video calling. Earlier the company said that it was planning to release 4G smartphones priced at Rs.4000 with a monthly data charges of Rs.300.
The statement said that the Lyf brand smartphones will be available through a wider distribution and retail network apart from the Reliance stores.
Earlier this year, Reliance Industries and Reliance communications have signed up a partnership to trade and share mobile airwaves to offer high-speed 4G services. This will result in the Ambani brothers working together in another business instance, which takes place rarely.
Mukesh Ambani, the country’s richest man, controls Reliance Industries, while Reliance Communications, India’s fourth-biggest mobile phone carrier, is controlled by his younger brother Anil, the Times of India reported.
Reliance Jio, the joint venture of Ambani brothers is expected to start its 4G services by the end of this year alongside Airtel and Vodafone, who are currently providing the 4G services in India.