Vodafone Idea Loses 3.5 Mn Subscribers, Jio Gains 1.41 Mn In Oct: TRAI

Vodafone Idea’s losing streak continued for the 16th consecutive month as the telecom operator continued to lose its subscribers. The telecom company lost more than 35 Lakh users in October, according to the monthly subscriber data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).

Meanwhile, Reliance Jio continued to strengthen its position and added more than 14.1 Lakh subscribers during the month. It grew its total user base to 42.13 Cr.

Airtel held on to the second position, adding 8.05 Lakh users in October. The Sunil Mittal-led company’s total subscriber base stood at 36.5 Cr. 

State-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited saw the exodus of 5.19 Lakh users, while its sister concern Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited lost more than 3,591 subscribers in the month under review.

Mumbai, Assam and Delhi saw the biggest monthly jump in the number of wireless subscribers in the month. 

Reliance Jio stayed at the pole position and accounted for 36.85% of the total market share, followed by Airtel at 31.92%. 

The overall tele-density stood at 84.69% at the end of October, down from 84.86% at the end of September. While the total urban tele-density hovered around 134.08%, the total rural tele-density settled at 58.01% in October. \

Telecom operators also logged 11.81 Mn mobile number portability (MNP) requests during the month under review. 

Recently, Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that 5G services in India have been expanded to 50 towns across the country since its launch in October.

As the rollout gathers steam, the attrition in the sector reportedly stood at 12.05% in the October-December quarter. With the space likely to witness higher attrition in the coming months, the telcos are expected to poach more talent from allied sectors to fuel their expansion and growth plans.

The space is also witnessing an overhaul, owing to the recently released draft Telecommunications Bill, 2022, which aims to usher in a new era of regulations and norms for India’s communications industry. 

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