India’s striking rise in telecommunication now has the latest milestone. Data from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) report highlights that the country’s telecom subscriber base has reached a mammoth 1.19 billion.
With a population of over 1.4 billion, India remains challenged by digital inclusion. However, the Jio 4G revolution, the government’s subsidy packages, smartphone affordability, and various OEMs producing phones in India have steadily helped the country bridge the digital divide. And the numbers reflect that.
According to TRAI, the number of telecom subscribers in December 2023 stood at 1.19 billion. The growth is particularly driven by the newly acquired subscriptions from Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio. Both have launched 5G service in India with Jio even claiming nationwide 5G coverage. The next-generation service launch has helped both increase and maintain a solid stronghold in India’s telecommunication market.
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TRAI says that by November of 2023, Indian telecom subscription was recorded at 1.18 lakh billion meaning an increase of over 46 lakh.
But as Airtel and Jio continue to push the industry, the brunt is being faced by other companies. Vodafone Idea is one of these. The telco lost its 13.68 lakh user base leading up to the end of 2023. Likewise, the government-owned BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited) also saw its base dwindle by 1.5 lakh. Its current state has been likened to a crisis as many users turn to Jio and Airtel for permanent solutions.
At the same time, the wireline user base also grew to reach 3.18 crore. Jio’s wireline subscription grew by 2.46 lakh while its competitor Airtel also drew in over 82 thousand users with BSNL losing its 34,250 wireline customers.
To make its growingly competitive telecommunication field better with quality, TRAI is thought to be contemplating a spectrum auction worth 11.6 billion.
India is the world’s third-largest telecommunication market and its enterprise influence is headed by private firms such as Jio and Airtel. Both these companies have also demonstrated satellite service and are planning to launch it commercially pretty soon.