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Airtel bundles Apple services with ₹999 postpaid plans

Bharti Airtel has upgraded its ₹999 and higher family postpaid plans by adding Apple’s iCloud+, Apple TV and Apple Arcade at no extra cost.

The new benefits give Airtel customers cloud storage, entertainment and gaming services along with their mobile connection. The move is aimed at making Airtel’s premium postpaid plans more useful for families that use multiple digital services.

Customers on eligible Airtel family postpaid plans can access iCloud+, Apple TV and Apple Arcade through their existing subscription. The offer is available on plans priced at ₹999, ₹1,199, ₹1,399 and ₹1,749.

The ₹999 family plan is designed for three connections, with one primary number and two additional connections. It offers unlimited voice calls, unlimited data and 100 SMS messages per day.

The plan already comes with several digital services, including Amazon Prime, JioHotstar, Google One and Adobe Express Premium. The addition of Apple services gives users more options for cloud storage, video streaming and mobile gaming.

iCloud+ is Apple’s cloud-storage service and allows users to keep photos, files, passwords and other information backed up and available across their Apple devices. Depending on the Apple account and plan, users can also share iCloud+ benefits with family members.

Apple TV gives subscribers access to Apple’s original movies and television shows, while Apple Arcade provides a collection of games without advertisements and in-app purchases.

The new Airtel bundle comes at a time when Apple is changing the way some of its services are packaged in India. Apple has combined Apple TV and Apple Arcade with iCloud+ for its Indian customers, giving users access to all three services through an iCloud+ subscription.

That change has created an opportunity for telecom companies to offer the Apple ecosystem as part of their own premium plans.

Airtel customers on eligible plans do not have to purchase separate subscriptions for the bundled Apple services. Existing users can activate the benefits through the Airtel app, while new customers can choose an eligible family postpaid plan.

The move also strengthens Airtel’s focus on family postpaid customers. Rather than competing only on data allowances and calling benefits, telecom operators are increasingly adding entertainment, cloud storage, productivity and lifestyle services to their plans.

For households with multiple users, such bundles can reduce the need to manage several separate subscriptions. A single Airtel postpaid bill can cover mobile connectivity while providing access to services used for entertainment, gaming and cloud storage.

Airtel’s ₹999 plan also includes other digital benefits, making it one of the company’s more comprehensive family offerings. Higher-priced plans provide additional connections and, depending on the plan, access to services such as Netflix.

The Apple additions are particularly relevant for customers who already use iPhones, iPads or Macs. iCloud+ can help keep photos, documents and other personal data synced across devices, while Apple TV and Apple Arcade add entertainment options.

Airtel has been expanding its partnerships with major technology and entertainment companies as it looks to increase the value of its postpaid business. Such partnerships can also help telecom companies retain customers by making their plans more difficult to replace with basic mobile-only alternatives.

The company has previously offered Apple services with selected plans, but the latest update brings iCloud+ into the package and expands the range of Apple benefits available to family postpaid users.

The development also reflects a wider change in India’s telecom industry. Mobile operators are increasingly becoming gateways to digital services, with customers looking for more than calls and internet data from their monthly plans.

For Apple, the arrangement provides another route to reach Indian consumers through Airtel’s large customer base. For Airtel, it adds a globally recognised technology brand to its premium postpaid portfolio.

With the new benefits, Airtel customers paying ₹999 or more for eligible family plans can now combine mobile connectivity with Apple’s cloud, streaming and gaming services under one package.