Reliance Jio has brought about a data revolution in the Indian telecom sector with its low price services making India the largest mobile data consuming nation in the world. Now, Reliance is eyeing the digital transformation of SMEs in the country. Reliance has entered into a ten year long strategic partnership with techgaint Microsoft to offer connectivity, computing, storage solutions and other technology services essential for Indian businesses.  

Accelerating the Digital Transformation of SMEs

“Today, I am privileged to announce that Jio and Microsoft have entered into a globally unique long term alliance to accelerate the digital transformation of India. We will set up a network of large world-class data centres across India powered by Microsoft's Azure cloud platform,” said Mukesh Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Industries, at the 42nd Annual General Meeting. Under the strategic partnership, Reliance and Microsoft will offer a comprehensive suite of connectivity, productivity and automation tools and applications for SMEs at Rs 1,500 per month. This move is expected to revolutionise the adoption of cloud infrastructure in the country. 

Addressing the RIL AGM over a video conference call, Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft said "Our partnership combines the power of Azure, Azure AI and Office 365 with Jio's connectivity and digital solutions. Together, we will offer a comprehensive technology solution from compute and storage to connectivity and productivity for small and medium size businesses in the country.” As a part of the agreement, Jio will set up data centres across India, consisting of next-generation computer, storage and networking capabilities and Microsoft will deploy its Azure platform in the datacenters to support the offerings.  

Ambani said that Jio has truly become the Digital Gateway of India, considering its 340 million subscriber base. By working in collaboration with Microsoft, Jio plans to develop integrated speech and computer vision solutions that support major Indian languages and dialects to promote the adoption of technology in the diverse Indian society. Jio and Microsoft aim to enhance the adoption of emerging technologies like Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Internet of Things and Edge Computing among small and medium enterprises to make Indian businesses globally competitive.