Adobe Strengthens India Push, Makes Express Premium Free For 360 Million Airtel Customers

Adobe and Airtel have entered in a partnership which will give more than 360 million Airtel customers access to Adobe Express Premium for one year. This is first-of-its kind partnership for Adobe which will ensure has announced that one of the largest consumer rollouts of a creative software subscription in the country. “We are excited to partner with Airtel to bring Adobe Express Premium to millions of people across India for free, accelerating the growth of India’s vibrant creator economy and enabling people to easily produce standout content – whether boosting their careers, growing their businesses or promoting their passions,” said David Wadhwani, President, Creativity and Productivity Business, Adobe.Under the partnership, Airtel customers will be able

to use Adobe Express Premium, normally priced at around Rs 4,000 per year, to create professional quality designs, social media assets, marketing materials and short videos without requiring prior design experience. The offer is available to all Airtel users, including mobile, broadband and DTH subscribers, and can be activated through the Airtel Thanks App without the need for a credit card.“We are extremely excited about this partnership as it is a unique opportunity to democratise creativity at scale. It will help pretty much every Indian, be it a small and medium business owner, or a student, or an entrepreneur, or a regular consumer, express themselves beautifully and professionally, depending on what their intent is,” Govind Balakrishnan, SVP and GM, Adobe Express told Times Now Tech. He said that the announcement is in line with Adobe’s mission to ensure creativity for all. Govind that the access to Express Premium will empower everyone to create as the barrier to entry is lowered. He added that the Airtel Thanks App felt like a natural extension in this regard as it will help with better discovery of Express Premium. When asked if Adobe has put a number on the users it aims to acquire through this partnership, Govind said, “We obviously have a very ambitious target, which is why we are excited about this partnership.”Adobe Express is positioned as a quick-and-easy, create-anything app that combines ready-made templates with AI-powered tools. The Premium subscription unlocks access to thousands of professional templates, including designs tailored specifically for Indian festivals, weddings and local businesses. It also includes advanced features such as instant background removal, AI-based image generation, one-tap video editing, auto captions and instant resize, along with premium Adobe Stock assets, more than 30,000 fonts, 100GB of cloud storage and watermark-free exports across devices.The partnership reflects a broader push to democratise access to creative and generative AI tools in India, particularly as content creation becomes central to personal branding, education and small business growth. Adobe Express is available in multiple Indian languages, including English, Hindi, Tamil and Bengali, enabling users to create content in their preferred language and cultural context. The platform is designed to support everyday use cases ranging from festival greetings and wedding invitations to WhatsApp Status updates and promotional creatives for local shops.“Express as a product is all about removing friction to get to creative output. The creator economy in India is booming, and there are more and more creators coming in with creative intent into the space. And with Express, our focus and our priority has been to lower the barrier to entry in a very, very meaningful way. A lot of our focus and energy has also gone into understanding the intent of the user and providing the right set of templates to the right experience based on their intent,” Govind explained. While he didn’t share much details, Govind also confirmed that Adobe is looking at more India-first collaborations to make its tools and platforms available for more users. The collaboration is expected to have a wide-ranging impact across user segments. Creators and influencers can use AI-powered video and design tools to quickly produce content optimised for platforms such as Instagram Reels and YouTube. Consumers can design personalised invitations and festival messages, while students can build presentations, portfolios and academic projects that strengthen digital communication skills. Small businesses and entrepreneurs can create logos, posters, QR codes and social media ads in minutes, reducing both cost and time to market. Marketers and advertisers, meanwhile, can develop on-brand campaigns that better reflect local identities and contexts rather than relying on generic templates.The partnership also comes at a time when digital services are facing continuous pressure from Generative AI platforms. However, Adobe doesn’t really see that as competition yet. “We don't look at any of these AI imaging tools and capabilities as something to compete with in isolation. Our approach to AI, and you're seeing this with Firefly, is to integrate these capabilities directly into what we consider a highly trusted end-to-end creative platform,” Govind said, while adding that when creators use Firefly model, they are also sure that their creations are safe for commercial use. The Adobe Express Premium will be available to all Airtel users, starting today. They can access this through the Airtel Thanks app. The offer is valid for one year, with terms and conditions applying and will significantly expand the reach of Adobe’s creative tools in one of its fastest-growing markets.