Airtel Unlimited 5G Data Subscribers Cannot Share 5G Data via Mobile Hotspot, Company Confirms

Airtel Unlimited 5G Data offer was first launched in India in 2023. Recently, various users reportedly complained about not being able to access unlimited 5G data while sharing it over a mobile hotspot connection. Reports hinting at the unsaid mandate had also been surfacing online for a while. Now, Airtel has updated the terms and conditions page on its website to clearly state that it does not allow sharing of unlimited 5G data over mobile hotspots with other devices. A tipster also highlighted that there has been a 300GB monthly 5G data usage limit since the beginning. This comes months after Airtel began transitioning to a dual 5G network model.

Airtel Says Unlimited 5G Data ‘Shall Not Be Allowed via Mobile Hotspots'

The Indian telecom service provider has now updated (via The Tech Outlook) the terms and conditions page on its website to confirm that it does not allow customers to share Unlimited 5G Data via mobile hotspot. The company website clarifies that the Unlimited 5G Data offers are only meant for “personal and non-commercial use”.

Further, Airtel's website states that the telecom service provider “reserves the right” to end, suspend, modify the offer, or services “in specific cases” if the Unlimited 5G Data offers are found to be used for commercial use or “any fraudulent” purpose. Interestingly, the terms and conditions also highlight that the sharing of data, “where the customer has activated Unlimited 5G Data”, is not allowed via mobile hotspots.

This update now clarifies that the Unlimited 5G Data is a phone-only offer. Hence, if a customer wishes to use their phone's internet on another device, the data would be used from their regular plan. Moreover, this is reportedly different from Jio's unlimited 5G offers, which do not restrict data sharing via mobile hotspots.

As previously mentioned, in November last year, Airtel announced that it had started transitioning its existing 5G customers towards the dual-mode 5G network, which operates on the Non-Standalone (NSA) + Standalone (SA) model. The company said that it was a step towards the adoption of the 5G Advanced network in India. However, it remains unclear whether the mobile hotsport restriction will remain in place even after the deployment of the 5G Advanced network.