Reliance Jio, India's number one telco, enjoys a complete 4G user base. Airtel and Vodafone Idea are private operators with legacy network users. Jio's ARPU (average revenue per user) figure has always been behind Airtel by a significant margin. But that margin seems to be closing down. As per ICICI Direct Research, Jio's ARPU is expected to come very close to Airtel's ARPU in Q2 FY23.
The report mentions that ARPU growth will be seen for all the telcos. For Jio, Airtel, and Vi, an ARPU growth of 3%, 2%, and 2% will be seen QoQ. Jio's ARPU will come up to Rs 181, while Airtel's ARPU will go to Rs 187. Vodafone Idea's ARPU will stand at Rs 131, still fairly short of the Rs 150 mark.
Jio, Airtel, and Vi Current ARPU
For Q1 FY23, Jio, Airtel and Vi reported their ARPU to be Rs 175.7, Rs 183, and Rs 128. In Q2 Fy23, as per the report, Jio's expected to show the highest percentage of ARPU growth. This counts for something and is a testament to the fact that despite premium pricing on 4G plans, Airtel's legacy customers are hurting its overall ARPU.
Industry sources said that Airtel is not going to push for higher 5G tariffs as it would result in a slower uptake and won't benefit the ARPU at all. Instead, Airtel would hike 4G tariffs and then match the 5G tariffs to that so that an overall increase in ARPU can be reported.
Vodafone Idea would wait for the other operators to lead with the tariff hikes to ensure that it doesn't lose more customers. The next round of tariff hikes is expected before the end of FY23. It could very well be during the December period, like in 2021 and 2019. With another tariff hike, Airtel and Jio would both be able to cross the Rs 200 ARPU mark, while Vodafone Idea would be able to cross the Rs 150 level.
