Reliance Jio Platforms Profit Grows 15% IN Q3 FY21; ARPU Climbs To Over INR 151

Reliance Industries’s digital venture Jio Platforms has reported a net profit of INR 3,489 Cr in the third quarter (Q3) of the financial year 2021. This has represented a 15% hike compared to INR 3,020 Cr reported in the second quarter. During the same time period, the average revenue per user (ARPU) also increased to INR 151 per subscriber per month versus INR 145 in Q2.

Jio Platforms consolidated revenue from operations, including access revenues, of INR 19,475 Cr in Q3 representing a 5.3% on the quarter increase, with an EBITDA margin of 43.6%. The company also achieved an annualised operating revenue run-rate of $10 Bn.

The total data traffic has increased to 1,586 Cr GB, while voice traffic is at 97,496 Cr minutes. Average data consumption per customer per month was 12.9 GB, while average voice consumption was at 796 minutes per user per month. The company added over 25.1 Mn users in the Q3 despite Covid-related constraints and local issues.

“Jio is determined to make India 2G-mukt, thereby empowering every Indian to have an affordable smartphone and be a part of digital and data revolution. We invite and encourage all stakeholders to work together to make world-class digital services available to every Indian consumer at the most affordable prices,” Mukesh Ambani, chairperson and managing director of Reliance Industries, said. 

Incorporated in December 2019, Jio Platforms Limited is expected to act as an umbrella platform for all the Reliance-owned digital businesses including Reliance Jio, MyJio, JioMeet, JioTV, JioCinema, JioNews and JioSaavn. JioMeet, its latest video meeting offering launched in July 2020, crossed 15 Mn users during the quarter.

Reliance Industries’ consolidated revenue also increased by 7.4% to INR 1.37 Cr in the Q3 of FY2021, with a 12% growth in EBITDA to INR 26,094 Cr. The Mukesh Ambani-led company’s net profit has also increased by 41.6% to INR 15,015 Cr with a cash profit of INR 21,473 Cr, representing a 27.5%.

Reliance Jio New User Addition Declines

It is important to note that its telecom service, Reliance Jio, is Jio Platform’s largest offering with 410 Mn users in Q3. However, this was the lowest net addition in the last seven quarters.

According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) report of October 2020, Jio is leading the market with 35.28% market share over wireless subscribers. It is followed by Bharti Airtel with 28.68% market share and VI (Vodafone Idea) with 25.42% share. It also leads the broadband subscription market with 55.53% share, followed by Bharti Airtel with 23.17% market share.

After taking over the telecom segment, Reliance Jio is now planning to lead 5G innovation in India. The company claims to have developed a complete 5G technology from scratch and is ready to be deployed once the 5G spectrum auction begins.

Reliance Jio had reported INR 54.5K Cr revenue in FY2020, representing a 33% growth from the INR 40.8K Cr revenue that was reported in FY2020. The company’s expenses also grew 29% to INR 46K Cr, yet leading to a slightly widened profit margin to INR 5,599 Cr. It has reported a profit of INR 2,982 Cr with INR 36,310 Cr expenses.

The earnings shown above are from the consolidated financial statement of Reliance Jio Infocomm, which includes Reliance Jio Infocomm Pte. Ltd, Reliance Jio Infocomm USA, Inc, Reliance Jio Infocomm UK Limited, Reliance Jio Global Resources LLC.

On a standalone basis, Reliance Jio Infocomm earned INR 54,403 Cr in FY2020 with an expense of INR 46,762 Cr, leading to a profit of INR 5,562 Cr. The company had reported a revenue of INR 2,844 Cr reported in the second quarter, and  INR 16,557 Cr in the first one.