Reliance Jio Infocomm Becomes Market Leader On AGR Basis

Reliance Jio Infocomm (RJio), a subsidiary of Mukesh Ambani-controlled Reliance Industries (RIL), has reported a marketshare in terms of 31.7 percent Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) for the quarter ended June 30.

In June, RJio had emerged as the largest operator with a subscriber base of 331 million.

Bharti Airtel ranked second with a 30 percent marketshare, followed by Vodafone Idea with a 28.1 percent share, according to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) data.

“RJio’s AGR (including National Long Distance) rose 9 percent YoY to Rs. 10,900 crore, and finally became the number one operator,” said brokerage firm ICICI Securities, which analysed the data.

It added, “RJio’s AGR grew strong at 12.3 percent in A circles and in metros grew 5.1 percent. AGR growth in B and C circles was 8.6 percent and 9.8 percent, respectively. Its ARPU (based on AGR) rose 0.2 percent on a quarter-on-quarter basis to Rs. 114.”

In comparison, RJio’s AGR was at 31.6 percent in the previous fourth quarter and 22.4 percent in the comparable previous year-ago quarter. AGR is defined as gross revenue minus access and pass-through charges. ARPU, or Average Revenue Per User, is a financial metric for a telecom firm.

Bharti Airtel’s AGR (including NLD) stood at Rs. 10,300 crore during the quarter under review.

The New Delhi-based company had posted a 27.2 percent market share in the fourth quarter of FY19, and 31.7 percent in the comparable year-ago quarter. “Bharti is gaining higher incremental market share in its traditionally weaker 1,800 MHz circles where revenue AGR grew 17.9 percent YoY to Rs. 2,400 crore. These were leadership circles of Vodafone and Idea Cellular. Bharti’s AGR grew 8.1 percent in its traditional 900MHz leadership circles,” said the brokerage firm.

Vodafone Idea’s AGR stood at Rs. 9,600 crore. The company posted a 28.1 percent AGR market share in the first quarter of this fiscal, compared with 34.7 percent in the year-ago period.

It posted an AGR market share of 32.1 percent in fourth quarter of last financial year.―The Hindu Business Line