The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has recently published subscriber data for December. The report details the number of subscribers added and lost by various telecom companies, as well as their total subscriber counts till December 31, 2024. In November, Jio added 1.21 million new subscribers, while BSNL, for the first time since the tariff hike, experienced a loss of 0.34 million subscribers. In December 2024, Jio continued to assert its dominance, while BSNL and Vi faced ongoing subscriber losses.
Jio, Airtel subscriber base in December 2024
According to the report, the country saw an addition of 2 million new wireless subscribers in December. Reliance Jio added 3.9 million wireless subscribers, while Bharti Airtel recorded a net increase of 1 million during the same period. Jio's and Airtel's subscriber bases now stand at 465.1 million and 385.3 million, respectively, up from 461.2 million and 384.2 million in November.
BSNL, Vi subscriber base in December 2024
While two operators in the country welcomed millions of new subscribers, others, such as Vi and BSNL, experienced significant losses. State-owned BSNL lost its appeal post-tariff hike, shedding 0.322 million subscribers—20,000 fewer than in November.
Vi, despite experimenting with 5G in select locations, emerged as the biggest loser, with a staggering loss of 1.715 million subscribers in December, up from just a million lost in November. By the end of December, BSNL and Vi's subscriber bases stood at 91.7 million and 207.2 million, respectively.
In other news, telecom giant Bharti Airtel announced on Tuesday its collaboration with Elon Musk's SpaceX to introduce Starlink's high-speed internet services to customers across India. This partnership is contingent upon SpaceX securing the necessary approvals to offer its satellite communications services in the country, as noted by Airtel.
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