Reliance’s Jio Platform’s indigenously developed 5G stack has sparked a debate: can it revitalize India’s struggling domestic telecom vendor ecosystem?
Part of India’s biggest business conglomerate, Reliance Industries, Jio Platforms has developed an indigenous 5G stack that it has tested in its own network and plans to sell globally. With over 450 million subscribers, including 213 5G subscribers, Jio’s 5G stack has been tested at scale in its own network. This means that the company would be competing with global telecom vendors, including Ericsson, Nokia, Huawei and Samsung, among others.
The company has developed an end-to-end suite of 5G technology solutions for both mobile and home broadband. In the mobile segment, its offerings include Open RAN 5G radios, 5G core network solutions, cloud-native operational and business support systems and AI-driven automation platforms. Jio Platforms would be looking to target markets in Asia, Africa and Latin America initially which are known to face similar issues, such as low Average Revenue Per User (ARPU), price sensitivity and need for cost-effective network build-outs, like India.
This comes at a time when India’s telecom manufacturing ecosystem is undergoing a period of rapid evolution, shaped by government policy and industry demands for self-sufficiency, security, and cost competitiveness.
Historically, Indian telecom operators have been heavily dependent on multinational OEMs for core networks, RAN, and backhaul equipment. Domestic companies like Tejas Networks (part of the Tata Group), HFCL, Sterlite Technologies, and Vihaan Networks have carved out niches but have struggled to reach scale globally because of limited R&D investment, procurement preferences for global brands, and fragmented domestic supply chains.
The bigger question is whether this success can spur a revival in India’s broader domestic ecosystem. With government incentives such as PLI (Production Linked Incentive) schemes and greater investments in research and development, Indian vendors now have the momentum to innovate and collaborate. Jio can potentially emerge as an anchor for local supply chain development. Lowering entry barriers and providing reference deployments can help Indian companies build, certify, and export their own network solutions.
Jio’s Unlicensed Band Radio (UBR), developed by US-based Mimosa Networks, which was acquired by Jio’s subsidiary Radisys, can emerge as an opportunity for Indian manufacturing to move up the value chain and contribute original intellectual property. Successful deployment of AirFiber FWA, which uses UBR, has seen Jio capture over 82% of 5G FWA connections in India, setting new standards for technology owned and operated by domestic firms.
Jio Platforms is not the only Indian company targeting the global telecom market. Tata Group is also leveraging its expertise by acquiring Tejas Networks and collaborating with Saankhya Labs, aiming to grow its capabilities in the space. By leveraging existing relationships with major carriers, Tata can potentially cross-sell indigenous solutions alongside its IT and telecom services.
The timing favors Indian players: exclusion of Chinese vendors in many international markets due to security restrictions creates a unique opening for Reliance, Tata, and their technology partners to expand their global footprints.
However, challenges remain. Indian telecom manufacturing is still heavily concentrated at the assembly and component supply level, with high-value systems being imported. The ecosystem needs commitment from all operators, not just Jio, to source from local vendors. Procurement reforms, R&D incentives, and standards adoption will be crucial to ensure that indigenous innovation does not remain isolated to a few giants but spreads across the vendor landscape.
India’s telecom equipment market is projected to reach $34-37 billion by 2030, with global spending on telecom technology estimated at $121 billion. If Indian vendors seize the opening provided by Jio and Tata’s global ambitions, they could capture a greater share of both domestic and export markets and set a template for sustainable competitiveness.
