Vodafone Idea Sees Subscriber Growth Amid Strong April Gains for Rivals Airtel and Jio

Vodafone Idea Posts Third Consecutive Month of Subscriber Growth in April

In a positive trend for the Indian telecom industry, Vodafone Idea (Vi) added 53,257 wireless subscribers in April, marking the third consecutive month of growth for the company. This brings Vi's total subscriber base to 198.53 million, according to data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).

The sector as a whole experienced a net gain of 6.96 million telephone subscribers in April, taking India's telecom subscriber base to 1.34 billion. Wireless subscribers accounted for most of this growth, rising by 6.17 million to 1.27 billion by the end of the month.

Read also: Treasury Yields Experience Largest Increase in Two Weeks Following Release of Labor Market Data

Bharti Airtel emerged as the biggest gainer in April with 3.13 million wireless subscriber additions, followed closely by Reliance Jio with 2.93 million new users. State-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) added 76,175 users during the month.

Despite adding fewer users than Airtel and Jio, Vi's return to positive subscriber growth is being closely watched by the industry and investors. The company has attributed this improvement to network investments and expansion efforts. In the company's Q4 earnings call, Vi chief executive officer Abhijit Kishore and other senior executives highlighted visible improvements across operational metrics driven by accelerated capex deployment.

Vi recorded subscriber additions across nine telecom circles in April, with Gujarat leading the gains with 170,343 additions, followed by Delhi at 94,300 and Bihar with 17,192 users. The company also added subscribers in Odisha, Punjab, Assam, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and the North East circles. Rural markets contributed significantly to this growth, with Vi adding 335,148 rural subscribers during the month.

Jio remained India's largest wireless operator at the end of April, with 499.2 million subscribers, followed by Airtel with 480.88 million users. BSNL's subscriber base stood at 93 million users. TRAI data also highlighted strong momentum in the fixed wireless access (FWA) segment, led overwhelmingly by Jio.

Read also: US-Iran Tensions Spark Uptick in Oil Prices Amid Global Market Decline

In terms of active subscribers, Jio continued to lead with 492.46 million active users, representing 98.63 percent of its total subscriber base. Airtel followed with 480.88 million active users, or 99.72 percent of its subscribers, while Vi had 169.27 million active users, accounting for 85.26 percent of its overall subscriber base.

Jio retained leadership in India's wireless market with a 39.25 percent market share, followed by Airtel at 37.81 percent. Vodafone Idea's market share stood at 15.61 percent, while BSNL accounted for 7.31 percent.