Telecom Regulatory of India released its report on the subscriber base for October 2021. Vodafone Idea, the merged entity of Vodafone and Idea Cellular, has also achieved a milestone if we observe the wireless subscriber numbers for the past 12 months. In this Analysis, let’s look into the subscriber numbers and the priority circle performance.
Vi (Vodafone Idea) Records Continuous Subscriber loss for the last 12 plus Months
From 267,129,032 wireless subscribers in November 2021 to 245,623,140 wireless subscribers in October 2022, Vi (Vodafone Idea) has come a long way with subscriber loss. Even the VLR hovered around 86 per cent, which saw many ups and downs. Also Read: Vodafone Idea Lost Subscribers in All of its Circles Except Delhi and Karnataka: TRAI Data
Vodafone Idea (Vi) Wireless Subscribers for October 2022
Vodafone Idea lost 3,509,666 wireless subscribers in all of its circles except Delhi and Mumbai. Vi lost most subscribers in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra & Goa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh East, Uttar Pradesh West and West Bengal.
Vi’s (Vodafone Idea) Lucrative Tariff Benefits Not Helping
We are not sure what kind of customers Vi is targeting, but considering the benefits the telco bundles on both prepaid and postpaid, it appears that the telco targets users who spend nights consuming the internet with Night Unlimited, watch a lot of OTT content and spend most of their times on mobile devices. However, even with such lucrative benefits, the subscriber numbers show that customers are least interested in sticking with the telco. We also believe if the churn continues, Vi will further reduce the tariff to attract or retain subscribers. But it needs to be seen, with such a subscriber base, who would be interested in investing.
Possible Reasons for Subscriber Loss
We believe the below might be some possible reasons for subscriber loss.
1. Network Quality
From my experience, network quality is one main reason customers are not sticking with the telco. Yes, Vi’s Network has issues, and I experience it daily. A few issues with the Network include No VoLTE or fluctuating VoLTE, not so good voice quality on 2G and poor data services where specific sites lag in loading. On one side, speed tests show 30 Mbps while Instant messages struggle to deliver or pages drag to load. This has been my experience since the merger and is not something new.
2. Investments
The number of years the telco has dragged without any concrete business plan also delayed bringing investments into the company. The anonymous references to fresh investments in the news are also possible reasons for hardly any trust left.
3. Actions are different from Words
On one side, the telco talks about unsustainable tariffs at various platforms but reduces the tariffs on postpaid and prepaid segments. So, this makes us believe vi does not need any funds and is sustainable. While no user will be interested in paying for substandard quality, we believe the telco needs to develop a plan.
4. No 5G Radios Installed
As of November 26, 2022, there is not a single 5G radio installed, per the Ministry of Communications response. On the 5G aspect, the telco claims they are working with handset vendors for the eco-system. What it is that the telco needs to work separately when two other telcos are also doing it in parallel is something we are not sure about.
Conclusion:
As of now, it is difficult to anticipate anything with much uncertainty around the telco. However, with subscriber loss continuing for more than a year, we believe it is highly unsustainable for any telco to perform. Note: Manual work is involved, and care is taken to avoid any errors. Please report in case of any corrections.
