Telecom revenues surge on back of higher ARPU and tariffs

Financial year 2024-25 has been fantastic for Indian telecom companies. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), posted net earnings for two consecutive quarters in addition to adding new consumers. Following the rate increases, Jio, Airtel, and Vi all witnessed increases in their average revenue per user (ARPU). Vi was able to increase capital expenditures (capex) earlier in the year by raising some money. In order to continue the capex cycle, the company is attempting to raise additional cash this year.

The monthly ARPU for wireless services offered by Indian telecom providers increased from Rs 149.25 in 2023–2024 to Rs 174.46 in 2024–2025. This represents a 16.89% annual growth rate, made possible by the tariff increases. It is unlikely that such growth will occur in FY26, though. This is due to the fact that no tariff increases are anticipated throughout the year.

Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea raised the prices of their new tariff plans by 10–25% in early July of last year. Jio and Airtel had both raised the starting 5G plan pricing by 46% and restricted unrestricted 5G connectivity to plans with 2GB or more of data per day. 

Airtel had increased the cost of its voice-only plans by 11% to Rs 199 as the base plan, while Jio had removed JioBharat and JioPhone plans. Jio's price hikes, which range from 12 to 25%, are more substantial than those of other carriers like Vodafone Idea and Airtel. 

According to data from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the ARPU per month for the prepaid service increased from Rs 146.37 in 2023–2024 to Rs 173.84 in 2024–2025. However, over the same time period, ARPU for postpaid services decreased from Rs 184.63 to Rs 180.86. India's total number of wireless data customers grew by 2.87% annually, from 913.14 million at the end of March 2024 to 939.51 million at the end of March 25. Considering that India has already attained a mature stage in terms of data users, these are good numbers.

The industry's overall revenues increased as a result of the increase in ARPU. From Rs 1,86,226 crore in 2023–2024 to Rs 2,15,078 crore in 2024–2025, the total revenue grew. This represents a 15.49% annual growth rate that was made feasible by the tariff increases. The telcos will probably seek to raise prices once more, but that will probably only take place in the upcoming year.