If monthly Arpu (average revenue per user) is like a currency to evaluate the health of a telecom operator, subscriber numbers are its mainstay. Recent developments establish that the two most critical metrics in the telecom universe - Arpu and subscriber numbers - are two sides of the same coin, with tariff being the proverbial X factor.
After 30 months of holding on to the same tariff levels, fearing that any hike would trigger loss of customers, companies decided to bite the bullet in July this year and raised prices across the board.
The subscriber churn has not stopped ever since. In fact, India's telecom market has thrown up more surprising numbers than anyone was willing to predict.
Not surprisingly, the industry is not rushing into a debate around the quality of subscribers, the difference between pre-paid and post-paid customers, and the cost of acquisition of users at this point. The next round of tariff hike, though necessary to inch closer to the international levels, can wait.
A senior executive at a leading telco told Business Standard recently that his company would not risk losing more customers by raising tariffs. For good reason.
Subscriber churn
Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea (Vi) have cumulatively lost 23.07 million subscribers in the second quarter (July-September) of FY25. Meanwhile, public sector telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) saw its fortunes rise with 6.3 million new mobile customers.
Breaking a record logjam of two and a half years, all three private sector telcos raised tariffs. Bharti Airtel and Vi announced a hike in mobile tariffs by up to 21 per cent, while Jio raised them by 12-25 per cent. BSNL stayed away from any tariff hike.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 05, 2024 من Business Standard.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 05, 2024 من Business Standard.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
The underlying slowdown in growth is due to inflation
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das, along with Deputy Governors Michael Patra, M Rajeshwar Rao, Swaminathan J and T Rabi Sankar, responded to a range of questions during a post-policy media interaction. Excerpts:
Hike in FCNR(B) deposit rate may have limited impact on flows
The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) decision to raise the interest rate ceilings on foreign currency non-resident bank [FCNR(B)] deposits is expected to have a limited impact on attracting inflows.
AI tool MuleHunter to tackle financial fraud
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das said on Friday that the central bank has developed an innovative artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) based model, MuleHunter.ai, to address the growing issue of mule bank accounts that are often used for committing financial fraud.
Small finance banks can now offer pre-sanctioned credit line on UPI
The RBI on Friday allowed small finance banks to offer pre-sanctioned credit lines through Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
CRR cut to improve lenders' margins, may lift credit growth
The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) decision to cut the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 50 basis points, injecting liquidity of ₹1.16 trillion into the banking system, is expected to reduce costs for banks and provide a much-needed boost to credit offtake, which has slowed in recent months.
A policy addressing market microstructure
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept the rates and policy stance unchanged.
No signs of stress across Adani group entities: JP Morgan
Global brokerage JP Morgan has assigned 'overweight' rating to four Adani group bonds and has ruled out \"any signs of stress\" across the key listed entities of the conglomerate saying most of them have leverage less than 5 times.
Tata Power eyes 40 mn customer base by 2030
Sinha was addressing the media at Tata Power's newly built 4.3 Gw solar module and cell manufacturing facility in Gangaikondan near Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu.
LG Electronics latest to test India's IPO market
In India, LG Electronics is the largest home appliances and consumer electronics player after Samsung India Electronics.
Ceat set to acquire Camso for $225 mn
Ceat, an RPG Group company, on Friday announced that it had entered into an agreement with global tyre company Michelin to acquire the Camso brand's Off-Highway construction equipment bias tyres and tracks business.