Just 16 months after its launch in September 2016, Reliance Jio has catapulted the telecom industry in India by turning profitable with a net margin of Rs 504 crore in its quarterly results ending December. The company added a data subscriber base of 160 million by December. Reliance Jio in a statement said it has created a strong data network with infrastructure and backhaul for offering wireless services, wireline services, enterprise offering, IOT services and other digital services.
With gross additions of 27.8 million during the quarter, Reliance Jio has given a tough competition to competitors like Airtel, Vodafone and Idea. Bharti Airtel's net profit results, announced on Thursday, showed 39 per cent decline in profit to Rs 306 crore compared to Rs 504 crore profit in same period in previous fiscal. The company's overall revenue fell 13 per cent to Rs 20, 319 crore primarily due to "regulatory fiat in terms of a cut in domestic Interconnection Usage Charges".
Reliance Jio said the growth in the subscriber base has also accelerated through the launch of JioPhone, which has expanded the reach of Jio Digital Services to all the feature phone users. The company has claimed average data consumption per user per month of 9.6 GB and average voice consumption of 694 minutes per user per month, highest in the industry.
With more than 200 crore hours of high speed video consumption per month on the Jio network, Jio continues to be the world's largest mobile video network, it says. RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani said: "Jio's financial result reflects the fundamental strength of the business, significant efficiencies and right strategic initiatives. Jio has demonstrated that it can sustain its strong financial performance."
Reliance Jio's latest 'Happy New Year' offer is 1GB per day data usage at a recharge of Rs 149, which is Rs 50 lower than its earlier plan. The company said all existing 1GB packs would be enhanced with two additional options - 50 per cent more data or Rs 50 discount on the price plans. Reliance Jio's flagship plan of Rs 399 would provide 20 per cent additional data, increasing the current validity from 70 to 84 days.