Broadband
Jio continued to add subscribers rapidly in July 2018
BENGALURU: Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani’s largest startup in the world in the form of Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited, or simply Jio, continued adding subscribers at almost constant rate in the month of July 2018 (Jul-18) according to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) Telecom subscription data. According to the available Trai data for Jul-18, Jio’s subscriber base had been growing at about 5 per cent compounded rate month on month (m-o-m) in calendar year 2018. Jul-18 was no different. Jio’s subscriber base grew by 5.19 percent to 2,270.5 lakh in Jul-18 from 2,152.6 lakh in Jun-18. Since December 31, 2017, Jio had added 669.6 lakh subscribers until Jul-18– it grew 41.83 per cent in the period.
Trai data for Jul-18 says that as per the reports received from 293 operators, the number of broadband subscribers increased from 4,471.2 lakh (447.12 million, 44.712 crore) at the end of Jun-18 to 4,692.4 lakh (460.24 million, 46.042 crore) at the end of Jul-18 with a monthly growth rate of 2.93 per cent. Subscriber numbers for all the three broadband services segments – wireline or wired; mobile devices comprising of phones and dongles; and fixed wireless (Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, Point-to- Point Radio & VSAT) grew in Jul-18. Please refer to the figure below:
The top five service providers constituted 97.75 per cent market share of the total broadband subscribers at the end of Jul-18. These service providers were Jio (2270.5 lakh, 227.05 million 22.705 crore), Bharti Airtel or Airtel (953.3 lakh, 95.33 million, 9.533 crore), Vodafone (637.9 lakh, 63.79 million, 6,379 crore), Idea Cellular (435.2 lakh, 43.52 million, 4,352 crore) and BSNL (201.8 lakh, 20.18 million, 2.018 crore).
Wireless broadband internet
Wireless broadband subscribers growth in absolute numbers was led by Jio, followed by Airtel, Vodafone, Idea Cellular and the public sector BSNL. BSNL was the only player among the top 5 wireless broadband internet services providers that lost subscribers in Jul-18.
As on 31 July, 2018, the top five wireless broadband service providers were Jio (2,270.5 lakh, 227.05 million, 22.705 crore), Bharti Airtel (931.1 lakh, 93.11 million, 9.311 crore), Vodafone (639.7 lakh, 63.79 million, 6.379 crore), Idea Cellular (435.2 lakh, 43.52 million, 4,352 crore) and BSNL (110.03 lakh, 11.03 million, 1.103 crore). Please refer to the figure below:
Wired broadband internet
Wired broadband internet subscribers grew by 50,000 in Jul-18, but none of the top 5 wirelline internet service providers showed any substantial growth in Jul-18. As on 31 July, 2018, the top five wired broadband serviceproviders were BSNL (91.5 lakh, 9.15 million, 0.915 crore), Bharti Airtel (22.1 lakh, 2.21 million, 0.221 crore), Atria Convergence Technologies (13.4 lakh, 1.34 million, 0.134 crore), MTNL (8.30 lakh, 0.83 million, 0.083 crore) and Hathway Cable & Datacom (7.5 lakh, 0.75 million, 0.075 crore).Please refer to the figure below:
Broadband
ACT Fibernet elevates Aditya Singh to chief customer experience officer
Former senior vp to drive service, retention and delivery revamp
BENGALURU: ACT Fibernet has elevated Aditya Singh to chief customer experience officer, effective 1 January, 2026, as the broadband provider seeks to tighten its grip on service quality in an increasingly competitive market.
Singh, who previously served as senior vice-president – customer experience and loyalty at group level, will now join the executive committee and lead the company’s end-to-end customer transformation agenda.
The move gives him oversight of customer service, customer retention and service delivery, alongside a broader mandate to strengthen network resilience and field operations. The company said the reshuffle underlines its intent to deliver a “consistent, seamless and superior” experience to its 2.3m subscribers across more than 30 cities.
Headquartered in Bengaluru, ACT Fibernet, the consumer-facing brand of Atria Convergence Technologies Limited, is one of India’s largest wired internet service providers. It has built its pitch on high-speed connectivity and responsive customer support, at a time when fibre roll-outs and price wars are redrawing the broadband map.
In a statement, Singh said he was “deeply honoured” to take on the expanded brief and join the executive committee as the company sharpens its focus on simplifying customer touchpoints and turning subscribers into brand advocates.
The elevation signals a clear priority: in a crowded fibre market, customer experience is fast becoming the decisive battleground.
