Excitel is challenging industry giants like Jio and Airtel with a bold approach to broadband and IPTV. Vivek Raina, CEO and Co-Founder, highlights that while others bundle OTT with broadband, Excitel’s IPTV seamlessly integrates live TV, OTT, and high-speed fiber into one service, offering a more complete home entertainment solution.”
Vivek Raina, the CEO and Co-Founder of Excitel, has steered the company to the forefront of India’s broadband sector, focusing on high-speed fiber internet at affordable prices. With a keen eye on market trends, Raina is now positioning Excitel to capitalise on the growing demand for regional content and future-proof home entertainment solutions.
In an exclusive interview with financialexpress.com, Raina highlights how Excitel’s IPTV model stands apart from competitors like Jio and Airtel, focusing on a seamless integration of high-speed fiber, live TV, and OTT content without the usual bundling gimmicks. Edited excerpts.
See, IPTV and OTT are completely different things and people often confuse the two. While we also bundle OTT in all our plans, none of our offerings today are without it. But IPTV is about bringing paid broadcast channels through the internet, and that’s a whole different offering. It provides a far more wholesome experience by combining high-speed internet, live TV, and OTT in a single seamless setup without a lot of cables coming into your home.
Right now, not many telcos or ISPs are doing IPTV the way we are. Most are focused on broadband with OTT on top, but our approach is different. We want to replace the traditional cable TV box entirely with an IPTV box that we don’t sell to the customer but offer as part of the service. That’s a big shift.
In terms of streaming quality, pricing, and even regional content, we’ve optimized the entire chain. Because we own the last-mile fiber, the quality speaks for itself. And we’re putting a lot of effort into regional content because we know how diverse Indian entertainment needs really are. This is not just bundling. It’s about redefining home entertainment for the next decade.
To answer your question, I would like to bring some context: the COVID-19 pandemic was a turning point for both the broadband landscape and Excitel. With people confined to their homes and content consumption surging, many realised the limitations of wireless broadband. Mobile networks rely on shared spectrum, which means lower speeds and unreliable connectivity, especially under heavy demand. Wireless broadband has always been a short-term solution, not a long-term fix.
5G FWA might have its own applications, but it’s not a replacement for fiber. The laws of physics don’t change. The wireless spectrum is limited, and as more users get added, speed drops. No country in the world has built a high-speed broadband network purely on wireless. Excitel is not under pressure to upgrade because we built for the future from day one. Our focus has always been on a strong fiber backbone, which remains the only truly scalable and reliable solution. Therefore, fiber is the foundation, and everything else is just a patch.
We began by offering higher speeds when the industry standard was much lower. Today, our plans start at 200 Mbps, whereas many competitors continue to offer entry-level plans at 30 Mbps. In fact, according to a recent report by Ookla, Excitel has been recognized as India’s fastest wireline broadband service provider. This third-time recognition reaffirms our core promise: reliable, high-speed internet that truly delivers.
The reality is most users don’t require 1 Gbps speed for their daily needs. Additionally, while Jio and Airtel operate on a telco-first model, we are a broadband-first company. This distinction allows us to focus on delivering an unshackled, high-performance fiber experience without unnecessary markups. We don’t bundle services unnecessarily; instead, we design personalised plans that genuinely make sense for our users. Excitel competes by offering pure-play, high-speed fiber without hidden costs, complicated lock-ins, or premium pricing traps. Our service is fast, straightforward, and tailored for individuals who desire excellent internet without clutter.
See the way the industry is structured; telcos and ISPs create artificial price gaps by compromising on speed at lower price points. If they were to offer 200 Mbps plans at around INR 500, like we do, their higher-priced INR 1000 plans wouldn’t sell. That’s why they keep entry-level speeds at 30 Mbps, it protects their premium pricing model. We don’t work that way. We built Excitel on the principle that great internet should be accessible, not a luxury. Our network is designed for efficiency, and our operating model eliminates unnecessary overheads. That’s how we deliver 200 Mbps where others are still stuck at 30 Mbps—without cutting corners or compromising profitability. Speed should be standard, not a premium add-on.
Yes, these AI-enabled experiences will eventually be part of our ecosystem. Maybe not really visible on the roadmap just yet but will come in the near future. We’re not in a race to launch features just for the sake of it—we’re building an experience that feels intuitive, not forced. So yes, it’s coming. The idea is to make the TV smarter, the interface simpler, and the viewing experience more personal.
We already have exclusive partnerships with Hotstar Amazon Prime and others. The way we see it, OTT is not just about bundling it’s about delivering real value. Users don’t need just another subscription thrown at them; they need a seamless experience that makes sense for how they consume content.
We will continue expanding our partnerships to ensure our users get the best of live sports, movies, and regional entertainment without unnecessary complexity. The goal is not just to keep up with the OTT wars but to redefine how broadband and content come together in a way that actually benefits the consumer. Financial Express