Vodafone Idea’s Active Wireless User Base Dips Below 200 Million

Reported by Tanay Singh Thakur November 16th, 2023 at 07:33 pm

As per TRAI's data, Jio was the only telecom operator that added active wireless subscribers during August 2023. The telco's active user base in July was 415.94 million, and it went up to 417.14 million in August 2023.

Highlights

Vodafone Idea (Vi), the third-largest telecom player in India, has lost millions of active wireless users in the past few years to its competitors.
Vi's active subscriber base has dipped below the 200 million mark.
TRAI data for the month of August 2023 suggests that Vi's active subscriber base stood at 199.39 million.

Vodafone Idea (Vi), the third-largest telecom player in India, has lost millions of active wireless users in the past few years to its competitors. As per TRAI's (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's) latest monthly performance report, Vi's active subscriber base has dipped below the 200 million mark. It is a big development for Vi as the telco is trying to raise funds through external investors and hopes for it to be concluded before the end of the December 2023 quarter.

TRAI data for the month of August 2023 suggests that Vi's active subscriber base stood at 199.39 million. In July 2023, Vi's active user base was at 202.32 million, signifying a MoM loss of 2.93 million active users. Vodafone Idea is the only telecom operator amongst the private telcos whose active subscriber base is below 200 million.

For Airtel and Jio, it was 375.54 million and 417.14 million, respectively.

Reliance Jio the Only Telco that Added Active Subscribers During August 2023

As per TRAI's data, Jio was the only telecom operator that added active wireless subscribers during August 2023. The telco's active user base in July was 415.94 million, and it went up to 417.14 million in August 2023. As for Airtel, there was a dip from 375.92 million in July to 375.54 million in August.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), a state-run Indian telco, also saw a dip in active user base as it went down from 51.68 million in July to 50.62 million in August 2023.

Jio's active subscribe base going up would help the telco increase its revenues, as for Airtel, the telco is more focused on increasing ARPU (average revenue per user) instead of growing the subscriber base. Jio is the only telecom operator in India whose active subscriber base has crossed the 400 million mark.

With the announcement of JioPhone Prima 4G and JioBharat phone platform, the telco is expected to add more low-paying subscribers to its portfolio.