Wireless Winners: Airtel and Jio Expand Lead While Vi and BSNL Slip

Image Source: Voice and Data

India’s telecom sector saw modest growth in January 2025, with Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio both adding wireless subscribers, while Vodafone Idea (Vi) and BSNL continued to lose ground, according to the latest TRAI report.

Key Highlights:

Airtel Leads Additions: Airtel topped the chart by adding 1.65 million new wireless users, taking its total subscriber base to 386.96 million and achieving a 33.61% market share.
Jio Maintains Market Lead: Reliance Jio added 686,143 new users, retaining its position as the market leader with 465.82 million subscribers and a 40.46% share.
Vi and BSNL Decline: Vodafone Idea lost 1.33 million users, dropping its base to 205.92 million (17.89% share), while BSNL shed 369,665 users, ending the month with 91.57 million subscribers (7.95% share).
5G FWA Growth: TRAI’s reclassification of 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) as wireless boosted the overall wireless base to 1.157 billion. Jio dominates the 5G FWA segment with 4.8 million users (85% share), while Airtel has 0.87 million.
Overall Market: India’s total telecom subscriber base rose marginally to 1.192 billion, with mobile number portability requests hitting 14.1 million in January, reflecting heightened competition and shifting user preferences.

The data underscores the ongoing churn in India’s telecom market, with Airtel and Jio consolidating their dominance as Vi and BSNL face continued subscriber losses.

Source: Business Standard, Economic Times, CNBC TV18, Angel One