Airtel’s been asked to take off air its ‘misleading’ 4G ad

Not everything seems to be going good for Airtel. After its much hyped 4G network roll out in all circles, one of the major telecom companies in the country has been served a notice from the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) accusing it of misleading the public.

So exactly did happen? "The advertisement contravened Chapter 1.4 of the Code," ASCI said in its order. This came in response to a complaint against an advertisement that promises "lifetime free mobile connection".

The advertisement was launched after Airtel announced nationwide 4G services in August. The advertisement promises, "If your network is faster, we will pay your mobile bills for life."


In August, Airtel announced plans to complete the rollout of services in 296 towns in all 14 circles where it has 4G airwaves. This was seen as a move to pre-empt Reliance Jio, which is expected to launch its 4G services by the year-end, apart from launches by rivals Vodafone and Idea Cellular.

An Airtel spokesperson told The Economic Times, "We are confident of getting a favourable response from them."