Jio Lost 1.9 Crore Wireless Subscribers In September: TRAI

Telecom operator Reliance Jio lost 1.9 crore wireless subscribers in September whereas Bharti Airtel added 2.74 lakh subscribers in September, as per the latest data revealed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). Vodafone-Idea too lost approx 10.8 lakh subscribers during the same period. 

Airtel's net subscription in the wireless segment grew 0.08 per cent to close September with 35.4 crore subscribers. Jio's net subscription fell 4.29 per cent with approx 42.5 crore subscribers in September-end whereas Vodafone-Idea had about 27 crore subscribers in September-end, a 0.40 per cent fall compared to the previous month. 

The telecom regulator mentioned that private access service providers held 89.99 per cent market share of the wireless subscriber whereas state-operated MTNL and BSNL cumulatively held 10.01 per cent. 

As per the data, total wireless subscribers fell 1.74 per cent to 116.60 crore at the end of September compared to the previous month. In urban areas, wireless subscriptions fell 1.92 per cent to approx 63.8 crore for the same period. In rural areas, wireless subscriptions fell 1.53 per cent to 52.8 crore.

The total telephone subscriber base declined 1.69 per cent in September to 1,189.15 million from 1,209.58 million in August. Telephone subscribers in urban areas registered a 1.82 per cent decline to 659.09 million in September compared to the previous month. Rural subscriptions too fell 1.53 per cent to 530.06 million in September compared to August.

The overall telecom density fell to 86.69 per cent in September compared to 88.45 per cent in August. TRAI stated that Delhi enjoyed the maximum teledensity at 269.76 per cent whereas Bihar had the least teledensity at 53.39 per cent.