3i Infotech is Awarded WiFi Monetisation Project by RailTel For Connecting ‘Bharat’

3i Infotech Limited (BSE: 532628, NSE: 3IINFOLTD), a global Information Technology company, committed to accelerating business transformation, has announced a multi-year contract from RailTel Corporation of India, a Mini Ratna PSU under Ministry of Railways and one of the largest neutral telecom infrastructure providers in the country. The objective of the WiFi Monetisation Project is to create a media platform that has measurable and physical footprint across the country. It would also bring rural India across the length and breadth of the country to its fold, with the mission of connecting ‘Bharat’ in its entirety and bringing about a major transformation in the Indian railways.

Reaching the next 200 million customers, 3i Infotech will roll out RailTel’s Super App, which is poised to revolutionize the industry by providing the right platform for digital advertisers & marketers to mass-market, regional, and hyper-local advertisements/content. The Super App will provide ease to access Indian Railways, services / information, and value-added services: infotainment, e-commerce, education, premium content services to name a few and free high speed internet access to its users. The App aims to become one of the largest in terms of users, usage and time spent in India.

The WiFi Monetisation Project will cover more than 6108+ railway station covering every state, city, town, and district of India where free public WiFi network have already been made available by RailTel. RailTel’s public WiFi network records more than 1.1 million unique users per day. With this collaborative deal, station WiFi is set to evolve digital experience to WiFi users. For this project, RailTel has signed a 5-year agreement with a consortium led by 3i Infotech. The other members of the consortium are Forensics Intelligence Surveillance and Security Technologies Private Limited (FISST) and Yellow Integrated Content & Communication (Yellow inc.).

The revenue will be generated by monetizing WiFi footfalls in one of the world’s largest integrated public WiFi networks through targeted advertising solutions, content & infotainment services for railway passengers. This is India’s first multi-year commercial agreement to monetize captive customers of public WiFi network through collaborative efforts. With this, public WiFi at railway stations is set to transform digital experience of railway passengers.

 As per the contract, 3i Infotech lead consortium will have revenue sharing understanding along with minimum revenue assurance to RailTel. The revenue streams proposed under the project include - ‘Captive WiFi Network', which is an active ecosystem to be upgraded for un-locking the advertising revenue. The current method of accessing WiFi network is to be evolved for onboarding more users. The next revenue stream will be Railways’ Super App, which will engage users beyond the railway stations through content, railway related information and other value-added services. The consolidated revenue potential expected to be upwards of Rs 250 Cr.  The maximum revenue potential from the WiFi Monetisation Project is pegged to be upwards of Rs. 1000 Cr over 5-year period.

Speaking about this agreement, Thompson P. Gnanam, Managing Director & Global CEO, 3i Infotech said, “It is going to be an important partnership with RailTel. This is a landmark moment for us and railway passengers, with the sheer scale of digital enablement this project is aimed at. This project is a strategic fit towards expanding our Edge Computing capabilities. Edge Application is the Super App which will be developed by us for the WiFi Monetisation Project.  We hope to get good patronage from advertisers and marketers. With this win, we will aim to further expand our business in the telecom, media, and entertainment verticals as we foray into media technology.”

Talking about this, Shri Sanjai Kumar, Chairman & Managing Director, RailTel said, “This Public-Private Partnership on WiFi network monetisation will truly transform the railway passengers’ experience, providing customers a differentiated digital experience. Moreover, it will provide an opportunity for advertisers to tap into RailTel’s widespread integrated public WiFi network at railway stations with the largest footfall of WiFi users in the country to deliver customized services & content. This move will also aid to the cause of Govt. of India’s Digital India mission. It will also help RailTel to enhance its revenue stream.”