Vodafone Idea Continues Its 12 Month Long Subscriber Losing Streak: TRAI

From 267,129,032 wireless subscribers in November 2021 to 245,623,140 wireless subscribers in October 2022, Vi (Vodafone Idea) has come a long way with subscriber loss. Even the VLR hovered around 86 per cent, which saw many ups and downs.

Highlights

  • In the month of October 2022, Vodafone Idea lost 3,509,666 wireless subscribers across all of its circles except Delhi and Mumbai.
  • Even with such lucrative benefits, the subscriber numbers show that customers are least interested in sticking with the telco.
  • Network quality can be one main reason for the loss of subscribers.

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Vodafone Idea Continues Its 12 Month Long Subscriber Losing Streak: TRAI

Telecom Regulatory of India released its report on the subscriber base for October 2021. Vodafone Idea, the merged entity of Vodafone and Idea Cellular, has also achieved a milestone if we observe the wireless subscriber numbers for the past 12 months. In this Analysis, let's look into the subscriber numbers and the priority circle performance.




Vi (Vodafone Idea) Records Continuous Subscriber loss for the last 12 plus Months

MonthTRAI Data forTotal SubscribersNet AdditionVLR %
Month 1Nov 2021267,129,032-1,897,05086.69
Month 2Dec 2021265,514,322-1,614,71086.42
Month 3Jan 2022265,125,240-389,08286.3
Month 4Feb 2022263,593,051-1,532,18985.7
Month 5Mar 2022260,774,732-2,818,31986.7
Month 6Apr 2022259,206,066-1,568,66685.77
Month 7May 2022258,446,808-759,25885.14
Month 8Jun 2022256,645,622-1,801,18685.2
Month 9Jul 2022255,102,703-1,542,91985.03
Month 10Aug 2022253,144,350-1,958,35384.65
Month 11Sep 2022249,132,806-4,011,54485.17
Month 12Oct 2022245,623,140-3,509,66686.2

From 267,129,032 wireless subscribers in November 2021 to 245,623,140 wireless subscribers in October 2022, Vi (Vodafone Idea) has come a long way with subscriber loss. Even the VLR hovered around 86 per cent, which saw many ups and downs.

Also ReadVodafone Idea Lost Subscribers in All of its Circles Except Delhi and Karnataka: TRAI Data

Vodafone Idea (Vi) Wireless Subscribers for October 2022

Sl. NoCircleSep 2022Oct 2022Subscriber Gain/Loss
1Andhra Pradesh & Telangana12,491,95512,300,968-190,987
2Assam2,264,2842,203,229-61,055
3Bihar9,959,6429,700,393-259,249
4Delhi16,616,49516,668,65152,156
5Gujarat23,266,73322,971,933-294,800
6Haryana7,729,4827,633,531-95,951
7Himachal Pradesh521,480510,985-10,495
8Jammu & Kashmir414,420408,684-5,736
9Karnataka7,668,0927,636,633-31,459
10Kerala14,990,80214,878,749-112,053
11Kolkata5,993,1355,947,569-45,566
12Madhya Pradesh18,318,85417,867,798-451,056
13Maharashtra & Goa26,351,73125,785,346-566,385
14Mumbai11,440,56711,515,15574,588
15North East1,023,2141,004,679-18,535
16Odisha1,677,8241,645,826-31,998
17Punjab7,640,3107,544,015-96,295
18Rajasthan10,609,21510,400,783-208,432
19Tamil Nadu17,445,19517,221,976-223,219
20Uttar Pradesh East19,609,01919,331,519-277,500
21Uttar Pradesh West17,878,47917,532,134-346,345
22West Bengal15,221,87814,912,584-309,294
Total249,132,806245,623,140-3,509,666
Net Addition-4,011,544-3,509,666

Vodafone Idea lost 3,509,666 wireless subscribers in all of its circles except Delhi and Mumbai. Vi lost most subscribers in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra & Goa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh East, Uttar Pradesh West and West Bengal.

Vi's (Vodafone Idea) Lucrative Tariff Benefits Not Helping

We are not sure what kind of customers Vi is targeting, but considering the benefits the telco bundles on both prepaid and postpaid, it appears that the telco targets users who spend nights consuming the internet with Night Unlimited, watch a lot of OTT content and spend most of their times on mobile devices. However, even with such lucrative benefits, the subscriber numbers show that customers are least interested in sticking with the telco. We also believe if the churn continues, Vi will further reduce the tariff to attract or retain subscribers. But it needs to be seen, with such a subscriber base, who would be interested in investing.

Possible Reasons for Subscriber Loss

We believe the below might be some possible reasons for subscriber loss.

1. Network Quality

From my experience, network quality is one main reason customers are not sticking with the telco. Yes, Vi's Network has issues, and I experience it daily. A few issues with the Network include No VoLTE or fluctuating VoLTE, not so good voice quality on 2G and poor data services where specific sites lag in loading. On one side, speed tests show 30 Mbps while Instant messages struggle to deliver or pages drag to load. This has been my experience since the merger and is not something new.

2. Investments

The number of years the telco has dragged without any concrete business plan also delayed bringing investments into the company. The anonymous references to fresh investments in the news are also possible reasons for hardly any trust left.

3. Actions are different from Words

On one side, the telco talks about unsustainable tariffs at various platforms but reduces the tariffs on postpaid and prepaid segments. So, this makes us believe vi does not need any funds and is sustainable. While no user will be interested in paying for substandard quality, we believe the telco needs to develop a plan.

4. No 5G Radios Installed

As of November 26, 2022, there is not a single 5G radio installed, per the Ministry of Communications response. On the 5G aspect, the telco claims they are working with handset vendors for the eco-system. What it is that the telco needs to work separately when two other telcos are also doing it in parallel is something we are not sure about.

Conclusion:

As of now, it is difficult to anticipate anything with much uncertainty around the telco. However, with subscriber loss continuing for more than a year, we believe it is highly unsustainable for any telco to perform.

Note: Manual work is involved, and care is taken to avoid any errors. Please report in case of any corrections.

Reported By

Telecom Analyst

Passionately following the Indian #Telecom Industry for over a decade from Business, Consumer and a Technical perspective. My primary focus area is Consumer & Digital Experience.

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