Broadband

May-16: ACT leads wireline broadband subscriber additions

Published

10 years ago

August 2, 2016

BENGALURU:Atria Convergence Technologies Private Limited (ACT, ACT Broadband) continued to lead wireline broadband internet (wireline broadband) subscribers in calendar year 2016 with 1.3 lakh subscribers added since 1 January 2016 until 31 May 2016. As per TRAI data, ACT had 8.6 lakh subscribers as on 31 December 2015 (Dec-15, or 1 January 2016), and it closed with 9.9 lakh subscribers on 31 May 2016 (May-16). At the time of writing this paper, ACT’s subscriber base should have crossed the 10 lakh (1 million) mark.

As per The Telecom regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) data, the top five players in India in the wireline broadband internet space in pecking order are the public sector Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), Bharti Airtel Limited (Airtel), public sector Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL), Atria Convergence Technologies Private Limited (ACT, ACT Broadband) and You Broadband (You BB).

Among these 5, only BSNL and Airtel could be termed as national players at present. BSNL, Airtel and MTNL also provide wireline telephony voice and data and mobile services while Airtel also has a direct to home (DTH) segment. ACT started off as an MSO with operations concentrated in a few major cities and towns located mainly in South India. It started internet services (ACT Broadband) a little later and has grown its broadband internet subscriber base over time, to the extent that it is quite likely the biggest private wireline broadband player in South India. You BB offers broadband operations in a few cities in Maharashtra, Gujarat the NCR region Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

ACT was followed by Bharati Airtel Limited (Airtel) which added 1.2 lakh subscribers in calendar year 2016 until May-16. Airtel had 16.7 lakh wireline broadband subscribers on 1 January 2016. In May-16, it had 17.9 lakh subscribers. Among the top 5 wireline broadband players in India, You Broadband (You BB) was next with 40 thousand subscriber adds during the same period. The other two players among the top five wireline broadband internet subscribers in the country – the public sector telecom companies –reported decline in subscribers between the same period.

You BB began the year with 5.1 lakh subscribers and as on 31 May 2016 it had 5.5 lakh subscribers. BSNL, the largest wireline broadband player in the country, opened 2016 with 99.2 lakh subscribers, lost 30,000 subscribers until 31 May 2016. MTNL lost 20,000 wireline broadband subscribers and had a tally of 11 lakh subscribers until 31 May 2016.
Please refer to figure 1 below for wireline broadband subscriber data of the top five players:

public://fig01.jpg

Overall, the top 5 wired broadband players have added 2.4 lakh subscribers (36.92 percent of total wireline broadband subscriber additions) between 1 January 2016 and 31May 2016 as opposed to the overall growth of 6.5 lakh subscribers in the country during the same period. Please refer to Fig 2 below:

In Mar-16, the largest ever number of wired broadband subscribers were added – in absolute numbers as well as in month-over-month (m-o-m) percentage terms. 2.3 lakh wired broadband subscribers were added, with m-o-m growth of 1.37 percent in Mar-16. The combined subscription numbers of the top 5 wired broadband players also had the largest ever subscriber additions in terms of absolute numbers at 1 lakh and at 0.71 percent in terms of m-o-m growth in Mar-16.

Thesubscriber numbers share of the top five wired broadband players in the country has reduced from 87.62 percent in Mar-15 to 83.45 percent as on May-16. During the same period the all India wireline internet subscriber base has grown 10.57 percent from 155.2 lakh to 171.6 lakh. The combined numbers of the top five players have increased by less than half of that in percentage terms – by 4.99 per cent from 136.4 lakh to 143.2 lakh. The top five players have added 6.8lakh subscribers during these 15 months, with ACT and Bharti Airtel contributing a major chunk to the growth.

public://fig02.jpg

Other wireline broadband players in India

MSOs’ in India have started providing internet services on the back of their television cable networks using Docsis technology. In general, they have started reporting double digit YoY increase in internet subscribers and revenue. The television cable players see broadband services improving their Average Revenue per User (ARPU) numbers. Three of the major MSOs and a regional MSO – Hathway, Siti Cable, Den Networks, Ortel Communications respectively whose results are available in the public domain have been showing steady growth in their broadband segment over the past few quarters. All the four have been reporting growth in average revenue per user (ARPU).

Overall broadband subscriber numbers for May 2016 including wireless and mobile

Overall, as per the reports received by TRAI from the service providers, the number ofbroadband subscribers (including wireless, mobile, dongles) increased from 151.09 million (15.109 crore) at the end of Apr-16 to 159.76 million (15.976 crore) at the end of May-16 with a monthly growth rate of 0.89 percent. The top five service providers constituted 84.32 percent market share of the totalbroadband subscribers at the end of May-16. These service providers were Airtel (40.80 million or 4.08 crore), Vodafone (31.55 million or 3.155 crore), Idea Cellular (25.70 million or 2.57 crore), BSNL (20.76 million 2.076 crore) and Reliance Communications Group (15.91 million or 1.591 crore).TRAI’s definition of broadband is internet download speeds greater than or equal to 512 Kpbs.

Notes:(1) The unit of currency in this report is the Indian rupee – Rs (also conventionally represented by INR).The Indian numbering system or the Vedic numbering system has been used to denote money values. The basic conversion to the international norm would be:
(a) 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10,000,000 = 10 million = 1 crore.
(b) 10,000 lakh = 100 crore = 1 arab = 1 billion.

(2) TRAI reports indicate data in millions of numbers up to 2 decimal places. Hence it is assumed in this report that a figure of 0.47 million (4.7 lakh) subscribers for You BB for July-2015 would be granular to the nearest 10,000. While percentages have been mentioned up to 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 million. This paper considers the number as 6.93 lakh or 0.693 million.
(4) MSOs’ have a number of subsidiaries and alliances, hence broadband numbers are split as applicable. The consolidated subscription numbers of these entities could be larger. Hathway is a case in point.

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Rabi Shankar Mishra takes charge as Airtel ceo in Pune

Published

2 months ago

December 18, 2025

indiantelevision.com Team

PUNE: Airtel has appointed Rabi Shankar Mishra as chief executive officer, based in Pune, marking a sharp leadership shift as the telco sharpens its focus on growth, execution and market momentum.

Mishra moves into the role after leading Airtel’s Guwahati operations, where he built a reputation for tight execution and cross-functional leadership. In Pune, he will drive business strategy, operational excellence and expansion, drawing on deep expertise across sales, scale and complex, multi-market operations.

Before joining Airtel, Mishra held senior leadership roles across global consumer giants. He served as sales director at the Hershey company, vice president at Diageo, and held multiple associate vice president and associate director roles at Mondelēz International and Cadbury India Ltd, overseeing large, high-value businesses and teams across regions.

His earlier career at Pepsico India and Cavinkare laid a strong foundation in sales, customer development and route-to-market strategy across fast-moving consumer businesses.

With a rare blend of FMCG rigour and telecom scale, Mishra arrives in Pune to push Airtel harder, faster and deeper into its next phase of growth.

Broadband

Global broadband subs hit 1.52 billion as fibre dominates

Published

7 months ago

August 6, 2025

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Global broadband subscribers surged past 1.52 billion in the first quarter of 2025, marking a 1.21 per cent quarterly rise as South and East Asia drove expansion, according to Point Topic data. Yet the picture remains patchy, with 22 countries—up from 14 in the previous quarter—seeing subscriber numbers fall as consumers shift to mobile broadband or grapple with economic headwinds and market saturation.

India topped the largest 20 fixed broadband markets with a blistering 4.7 per cent quarterly growth rate, whilst Britain stood out as an outlier, suffering a 0.3 per cent decline as fibre rollout failed to offset broader connection losses.

Fibre-to-the-home and building connections now command 72.34 per cent of global fixed broadband subscriptions, cementing the technology’s dominance. Other fixed technologies saw their market shares shrink, bar satellite and fixed wireless access, which bucked the trend with spectacular annual growth of 47.4 per cent and 29.9 per cent respectively.

The satellite boom was largely driven by Starlink breaching the 5 million customer mark, though growth has slowed due to capacity constraints and pricing pressures. Competition is set to intensify as Amazon’s Project Kuiper prepares for launch by year-end, with Britain expected among the first markets to go live following Ofcom approvals. Residential plans currently start at around £75 monthly.

Fixed wireless access is reshaping rural connectivity, particularly in America and India, with aggressive investments from Reliance, Bharti, T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T driving adoption.

Industry consolidation is accelerating, with potential mega-deals including Charter’s merger with Cox in America and a possible carve-up of France’s SFR among Orange, Bouygues and Iliad. Meanwhile, sub-Saharan Africa represents untapped potential, attracting significant infrastructure investment targeting broadband expansion.

Broadband

Act Fibernet plugs in Amazon Prime Lite for a double shot of value

Published

8 months ago

June 18, 2025

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Act Fibernet has struck a streaming sweet spot. The wired internet major has teamed up with Amazon Prime to offer its users a fresh set of broadband plans bundled with Prime Lite — a compact yet power-packed version of Amazon’s popular subscription service.

Designed for digital-first consumers who want speed and spectacle in equal measure, the new ACT plans include high-speed fibre connectivity along with Prime Lite benefits: HD access to Prime Video’s catalogue of originals, films, and TV shows on one device, unlimited Same-Day/Next-Day deliveries, early bird access to marquee sales like Prime Day, and exclusive shopping deals.

Act’s subscribers, both new and existing, can access the bundle by signing up for six-month (or longer) plans. Once onboard, Prime Lite perks remain active for as long as the eligible Act subscription is live.

Act VP, head of brands, content and partnerships, Naveen Nahar, said, “At Act Fibernet, our brand promise is simple — Feel the Advantage. It’s about going beyond the fast internet to deliver real, everyday value to our customers. With the launch of Amazon Prime Lite on our platform, we’re giving our users the best of entertainment, shopping, and convenience — all in one seamless experience. Whether its world class shows, free express deliveries, or early access to deals, this partnership ensures our customers don’t just stay connected, they stay ahead.”

“At Prime Video, we remain committed to offering easy and convenient access to our much-loved Originals, movies, series, and more to customers across India,” said Prime Video India director & head, SVOD Business, Shilangi Mukherji said, “This strategic collaboration with Act Fibernet not only simplifies access to Prime Video’s extensive content selection but also delivers other shopping & shipping benefits of Prime Lite, like unlimited free ‘Same-day/Next-Day’ delivery across millions of products, early access to exclusive deals, and much more.”

With this move, Act is no longer just a broadband provider — it’s a bundled convenience powerhouse. For subscribers, it’s all the streaming, scrolling, and shopping — at the speed of light.

Below is a list of cities and their corresponding starting rates for Prime Lite with ACT Plans: