Airtel Adds YouTube Premium to Its ₹200 Prepaid OTT Pack With 30GB of Data

Bharti Airtel has added YouTube Premium to a ₹200 prepaid add-on pack that also carries 30GB of data and access to streaming services including Prime Video, JioHotstar, ZEE5 Premium and Sony LIV, valid for 28 days, TelecomTalk reported on 23 October 2026. The pack covers more than 20 streaming platforms in all, according to Gizbot.

The move brings Google's ad-free YouTube tier into a telecom bundle alongside Indian streaming apps. For Airtel it is a way to lift what prepaid users spend each month; for YouTube it opens a route to paying users through the monthly recharge, which prepaid users already make.

What the pack includes

• YouTube Premium: ad-free videos, including Shorts, background play, offline downloads and YouTube Music Premium. Sponsorships built into creators' videos can still appear, TelecomTalk noted.
• Streaming apps: Prime Video (the mobile edition), JioHotstar, ZEE5 Premium and Sony LIV, the last offered through Airtel Xstream Play.
• Data: 30GB, valid for 28 days.
• Not included: calls or SMS. It is an add-on and needs an active Airtel prepaid plan.

Users claim YouTube Premium separately in the Airtel Thanks app under Rewards and OTTs after recharging, and must buy the pack again to keep the benefits after 28 days, both reports said. A standalone individual YouTube Premium plan costs about ₹149 a month in India, according to Gizbot, so the pack costs about ₹51 more and adds data and the other apps.

Why it matters

Telecom bundles are a common route for streaming services to reach Indian users, because recharges are already part of the monthly budget, and they help operators lift average revenue per user (ARPU). Prepaid ARPU in India has crossed ₹200, according to TRAI data.

The bundle also shows the scramble for subscription revenue as viewing shifts online: online video has overtaken TV in India's screen economy, and Netflix India just posted its best quarter for new paid members. Aggregation is spreading beyond telcos too: Prime Video this week added Sony LIV as a ₹399-a-month add-on. Airtel has not said how many users take its OTT packs, and the companies have not disclosed how the revenue is shared.