Reliance Jio Dominates April Subscriber Growth, BSNL Sees 1.8 Million Loss

Reliance Jio has demonstrated impressive growth in subscriber numbers, adding 2.6 million new users in April 2025, according to recent data from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The company also reported a significant increase in active users, reaching 5.5 million. Jio continues to dominate the 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) market, holding an impressive 81.9 percent share. Meanwhile, the overall telecom sector added 1.9 million subscribers, recovering from previous losses due to SIM consolidation following a tariff hike in July 2024.

Jio’s Subscriber Growth

In April, Reliance Jio’s subscriber growth showed a notable improvement, with the company adding 2.6 million new subscribers. This marks an increase from 2.2 million in March and 1.8 million in February. The rise in active users was equally remarkable, with 5.5 million new active subscribers reported in April, up from 5.0 million in March. This surge has led to an increase in Jio’s Visitor Location Register (VLR) ratio, a critical measure of active users, which rose to 96.6 percent in April, compared to 96.0 percent in March. The company’s aggressive expansion strategy, particularly in the 5G FWA segment, has significantly contributed to this growth.

Challenges for Competitors

In contrast to Jio’s success, Bharti Airtel experienced a slowdown in subscriber growth, adding only 0.2 million new users in April, a sharp decline from 1.3 million in March. The company also faced a drop of 4.1 million in its active subscriber base, reversing the gains made in the previous three months. Despite these challenges, Bharti Airtel maintained the highest VLR ratio in the industry at 98.9 percent. Vodafone Idea (VIL) continued to struggle, losing 0.6 million subscribers and 1.1 million active users in April. The company also reported a significant decline in mobile broadband subscribers, with its VLR ratio at 85.1 percent. BSNL also faced difficulties, losing 0.2 million overall subscribers and 1.8 million active subscribers, resulting in the lowest VLR ratio at 61.4 percent.

5G FWA Market Dynamics

Reliance Jio’s dominance in the 5G FWA market is evident, as the company added 0.57 million new subscribers in April, up from 0.33 million in March. This growth is attributed to the aggressive rollout of its JioAirFiber service, which is now available in over 5,900 towns and cities across India. Jio’s market share in the 5G FWA segment remains strong at 81.9 percent, while Bharti Airtel holds an 18.1 percent share after adding 0.16 million subscribers in the same segment. In the Machine-to-Machine (M2M) segment, Bharti Airtel leads with a 53.3 percent market share, followed by Vodafone Idea at 23.6 percent, while Jio’s share remains steady at 18.2 percent.

Data Availability and Future Outlook

TRAI has noted that subscriber data for Mobile Broadband (MBB) and Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) services for Jio and Bharti Airtel from December 2024 onward is currently unavailable. The figures reported for April are based on the last available data from November 2024. As the telecom industry continues to evolve, the competition among major players like Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea will likely intensify, especially as they adapt to changing market dynamics and consumer demands.

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