Reliance Jio pips Voda Idea to become India’s top telecom service provider
29 Jul 2019
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Reliance Jio Infocomm has become the country’s top telecom service provider with a subscriber base of 331.3 million, relegating Voda Idea with its 320 million subscriber base to the second place.
Reliance Jio has been adding subscribers on a monthly basis and has won more subscribers than other telcos, as companies prepare for the planned rollout of a 5G network next year.
Reliance Jio’s subscriber base grew to 331.3 million in the quarter ended June, the company reported last week. Against this, Voda Idea’s subscriber base declined to 320 million from 334.1 million last quarter.
Reliance had last week reported that Jio's subscriber base stood at 331.3 million at the end of the June quarter. Jio had pipped Bharti Airtel in May to become the second largest mobile operator with 322.9 million users and 27.80 per cent market share, according to Trai data.
Airtel had 320.38 users or 27.6 per cent market share.
Reliance Jio’s market share increased to 27.8 per cent, according to data released by the industry regulator Trai. Vodafone Ideas market share was 33.4 per cent and Bharti Airtel Ltd had 27.6 per cent of the wireless market.
RJio, launched three years ago, grew rapidly fuelled by cheaper tariffs and free voice calls. Reliance Industries, controlled by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, also invested more than $36 billion on supporting infrastructure to lead an intense competition that has driven India’s data tariffs to the lowest in the world.
The price war led to closure and bankruptcy of many firms> Some of them were forced to shut down or combine with other players, such as the local unit of Vodafone Group Plc that merged with Idea Cellular Ltd.
Analysts expect Reliance Jio to become India's leading telco on a revenue basis by 2021 and on a subscriber basis by 2022, given its current rate of ongoing customer acquisition.
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