Wireless net subscriber additions were muted in October with a mere 0.1% month-on-month (m-o-m) growth, showed data from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. Total wireless subscriber base reached 1,150.1 million at the end of October, against 1,150.2 million at September end.
Among key telecom companies, Reliance Jio (R-Jio) led the charge, gaining the most wireless subscribers in October, with net additions at 3.2 million. Bharti Airtel Ltd followed suit with 0.4 million subscriber addition whereas Vodafone Idea Ltd (Vi) was the biggest loser, with subscribers dropping by 2 million.
This meant R-Jio and Bharti gained wireless market share at Vi’s expense. R-Jio and Bharti gained 25 and 1 basis points (bps) m-o-m in the wireless subscriber market share, while Vi lost further about 19 bps in October and other players cumulatively shed 15 bps, according to Kotak Institutional Equities.
Kotak sees accelerated market share gains for Bharti and R-Jio at Vi’s expense, to be driven by nationwide 5G rollouts, coupled with Vi’s cash constraints, long-delayed fund-raise and uncertainty about the 5G launch.