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American multinational independent investment bank and financial services, Jefferies, has said the Indian telecom sector is likely to turn into a duopoly sooner than expected, attributable to a decline in Vodafone Idea subscribers.
VIL's (Vodafone Idea) subscriber losses may accelerate due to Jio's recent Jio Bharat launch, which will turn the market into an effective duopoly sooner than expected, Jefferies said in a report put out on August 1. In the recently published data by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), it could be seen that Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel gained wireless subscribers in May 2023, while Vodafone Idea loosed. Reliance Jio recorded net subscriber addition of 3.03 million and Bharti Airtel added 1.32 million wireless subscribers, TRAI data showed. Limited recovery in Vodafone Ideas 3G and 4G subscribers, according to the report, suggests that 5G rollouts by Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio are putting pressure on Vodafone Ideas 4G subscriber base. The report said it could continue to drive market share gains for Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio. Jio has led Bharti in terms of active subscriber addition in every month YTD (year-to-date), and this is likely to continue with the recent Jio Bharat launch, the report added. Jio in early July launched a 4G-enabled phone 'Jio Bharat' at only Rs 999 per unit, the lowest entry price for an internet-enabled mobile phone. A recharge of Rs 123 per month will provide users with unlimited voice calls and 14 GB data, compared to other operators' Rs 179 plan for voice calls and only 2 GB data. India still has an estimated 250 million mobile subscribers trapped in the 2G era with feature phones. Jio Bharat is being launched with the objective of empowering every Indian with the power of digital services, especially those who cannot afford a smartphone, Jio had said after the release of the low-cost phone. The Jio Bharat phone comes with inbuilt apps such as JioSaavn and Jio Cinema. It also offers UPI through Jio Pay. (ANI)
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