Broadband
Wired Broadband: ACT continues to lead growth, Airtel adds 40K subscribers
BENGALURU: ACT (Atria Convergence Technologies) continues to lead the wired broadband growth in calendar year 2015 with 1.6 lakh subscriber additions from 31 January, 2015 until 31 August, 2015. The latest numbers disclosed by The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) as on 31 August, 2015 reveal that the total number of wired broadband subscribers in India stood at 160 lakhs. Hence 6.8 lakh subscribers were added between 31 December, 2014 and 31 August, 2015, and 1.6 lakh subscribers were added in August 2015.
Note: (1) 100,00,000 = 100 Lakh = 10 million = 1 crore
(2) TRAI reports indicate data in millions of numbers. Hence it is assumed in this report that a figure of 0.47 million subscribers for You BB for July-2015 would be granular to the nearest 10,000. While percentages perforce have been mentioned up to the two decimal places, the accuracy may vary, depending upon the exact number
(3) Industry sources say that TRAI numbers in the case of ACT for May-2015 are incorrect at 0.66 million and the correct number would be 0.693.
While the pecking order remains the same with the top three – Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), Bharati Airtel (Airtel) and Mahanagar Telecom Nigam Limited (MTNL) also providing voice (telephone) services and many of their wired internet customers use both services – voice and data. The big three are followed by ACT and You Broadband India.
ACT still continues to lead the growth in wired broadband subscriptions with a net addition of 20,000 subscribers in August 2015, taking its tally to 1.6 lakh subscribers (23.53 per cent of the all India additions) added since 31 December, 2014. ACT’s contribution to the all India additions to subscriber numbers in August was therefore 12.5 per cent. Hence ACT’s market share in the wired internet space in India improved by eight basis points to 4.81 per cent in August 2015 as compared to 4.73 in July-2015
However, telecom major Bharti Airtel is swiftly closing the gap. The behemoth added 40,000 wired internet subscribers or 25 per cent of the all India additions in August 2015, taking its tally to 1.3 lakh subscribers (19.12 per cent of the all India additions) added between 31 December, 2014 and 31 August, 2015. Airtel’s market share improved 16 basis points to 9.63 per cent in August 2015 as compared to 9.47 per cent in July 2015.
You Broadband added 10,000 or 6.25 per cent of the all India wired broadband subscribers added in August 2015, taking its tally to 4.8 lakh subscribers until 31 August, 2015, and a net addition of 60,000 subscribers (8.82 per cent of the all India additions) since 31 December, 2014. You Broadband’s market share has improved by three basis points to three per cent in August 2015 as compared to the 2.97 per cent in July 2015.
The public sector BSNL and MTNL subscription numbers are same as the numbers reported for July 2015, and hence there appears to be no net growth in wired broadband subscribers on their part. However, since the overall market size is increasing, their market share has declined even further. BSNL had a market share of 62 per cent, down by 63 basis points as compared to July 2015, while MTNL lost seven basis points to reach a market share of 7.06 per cent as compared to 7.13 per cent in July 2015. As on 31 December, 2014, BSNL had a market share of 65.14 per cent, while MTNL had a market share of 7.38 per cent.
Please refer to the figure below:
Broadband
Tejas Networks names Arnob Roy as MD and CEO, overhauls top leadership team
The Bengaluru-based telecom gear maker reshuffles its entire top team even as quarterly revenue collapses by 83 per cent
BENGALURU: Tejas Networks is changing the guard at the top, and doing so at speed. The Bengaluru-headquartered telecom equipment maker has elevated Arnob Roy as managing director and chief executive officer, effective April 15, 2026, for a term running through to August 3, 2028, and in the same breath announced new appointments across operations and finance. The timing is pointed: the company is navigating one of the roughest patches in its recent history.
Roy steps up from his role as executive director and chief operating officer, a position he has held since March 2019. He brings more than three decades of experience in the high-technology sector across research and development, operations, and sales. His predecessor, Anand Athreya, resigned last year citing personal reasons and was relieved on June 20, 2025, leaving a gap at the top that has now been formally filled.
The numbers Roy inherits are sobering. Tejas posted a net loss of Rs 211.3 crore in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026, a near-194 per cent widening year on year from Rs 71.8 crore in the same period a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter collapsed 82.6 per cent year on year to Rs 333 crore, down from Rs 1,907 crore. EBITDA swung to a loss of Rs 118.2 crore against a profit of Rs 121.5 crore a year ago. The culprit is not hard to identify: Tejas has derived the bulk of its revenue from BSNL’s fourth-generation network project, delivered as part of a Tata Consultancy Services-driven consortium, and that roll-out is now winding down.
Roy, speaking during a post-earnings conference call with analysts, was candid about where the company has been. “The BSNL 4G network went live across 100,000 sites. We deployed our largest indigenous router networks in the country through the BSNL MAN network, as well as in the BharatNet Phase 3 network,” he said, adding that Tejas had also successfully rolled out its 400G and 800G DWDM equipment in domestic and international markets, and continued the deployment of what it describes as the world’s largest satellite IoT network through its vehicle tracking system solution.
The pivot to new revenue streams is already under way. Tejas has partnered with Japan’s Rakuten Symphony and NEC Corporation to push deeper into international markets, with several Open Radio Access Network trials ongoing, one of which concluded recently. The company is also diversifying across equipment categories and geographies to sustain momentum as the BSNL chapter closes.
To prosecute that strategy, Roy needs a full team around him. Preetham Uthaiah has been appointed chief operating officer, moving up from his current role as vice president of product management for wireless products at Tejas Networks. Uthaiah brings nearly 30 years of global experience spanning engineering, product management, and business development across India and the United States. Before joining Tejas Networks, he served as executive vice president of product management, marketing, and strategy at Saankhya Labs, and held senior roles at Tech Mahindra on both sides of the Atlantic. He holds an MBA from Arizona State University and a degree in electronics and communications from Karnatak University.
On the finance front, AVS Prasad has been approved as chief financial officer, effective May 16, 2026, succeeding Sumit Dhingra, who has resigned. Prasad, currently serving as finance controller at Tejas Networks, brings over 27 years of experience within the Tata Group across telecom, aerostructures, and defence. A company secretary and cost and management accountant by training, he has spent more than 15 years in senior finance roles including CFO and financial controller positions, with expertise spanning corporate finance, treasury management, regulatory compliance, internal audit, and governance.
New chief executive, new chief operating officer, new chief financial officer — all installed in a single move, at a moment when the company’s largest revenue source is drying up and the next chapter remains unwritten. Tejas Networks has placed its bets. Now it has to deliver.
