1. Airtel has now modified its customer base measurement to represent only transacting and revenue generating customers.
2. Airtel lost 5.7 cr customers in Dec.
3. Airtel ARPU is increasing. Airtel recorded sequential quarter-on-quarter increase of 4.1% at Rs 104. Airtel recorded ARPU of Rs 118.
Definition of customer is now revenue earning customers from service revenue rather than incoming revenue.
“We have cleaned 49-50 million subscriber last quarter. This is primarily the low ARPU, low-end customers who were primarily incoming customers who have gone away from our system” [Airtel]
JioPhone Vs. A SmartPhone
“We maintain, we are not interested in subsidising at the lower end of the market. We would much rather see upgrades coming directly from feature phones to smartphones. Large pool of customers see smartphones as an aspiration, and that is where our focus is,” Airtel CEO, Vittal said.
Now, this is interesting because Jio Phone is primarily a big competition for Airtel (due to lock-in) and maybe, in the next 2 years – you might see people upgrading to a smartphone, which becomes a playground for all other operators.
[Source: (TimesNow)]
