Bharti Airtel saw a 78% drop in net subscriber additions during the September quarter, driven by higher churn after discontinuing its Rs 299 plan. Despite this, ARPU rose to Rs 271, and mobile revenue grew by 3.4% quarter-on-quarter.
Bharti Airtel Subscriber Growth Declines
Bharti Airtel recorded a 78 per cent drop in quarterly net mobile subscriber additions during the September quarter, adding 7.2 lakh subscribers compared to 32.7 lakh additions in the preceding June quarter, according to a research report by Citi. The decline came after the company discontinued its entry-level prepaid smartphone plan priced at Rs 299 in August 2026, which pushed mobile churn from 2.6 per cent to 2.9 per cent during the second quarter.
“Net sub adds, however, declined QoQ from +3.3m to +0.7m on account of higher churn (up from 2.6% to 2.9%), likely on account of the plan rationalisation step taken in Aug 26 which involved discontinuation of the Rs299 entry-level prepaid smartphone plan; we await further colour from mgm’t on whether this is likely to reverse in 3Q,” the report added.
Segment Performance and Financials
Total mobile subscribers reached 37.7 crore, while quarterly additions in the 4G and 5G segments dropped from a run rate of roughly 50 lakh to 30 lakh, bringing the total base in that segment to 30.5 crore. Postpaid additions showed momentum, rising to 12 lakh compared to the previous range of 6 lakh to 10 lakh additions per quarter, taking the total postpaid base to 3.1 crore.
“Bharti delivered a robust 2Q, with India mobile revenue/EBITDA growing 3.4%/3.8% QoQ, both 1% ahead of our estimates. This performance came despite elevated churn on account of the premiumisation initiative taken during the quarter (withdrawal of the Rs 299 plan), with stronger-than-expected ARPU accretion offsetting lower net subscriber additions,” the Citi research report stated.
Key Financial Metrics
Average revenue per user (ARPU) rose to Rs 271 from Rs 264 in the previous quarter, exceeding market expectations of Rs 268. India mobile revenue reached Rs 30,900 crore and operating profit touched Rs 18,900 crore, while earnings margins expanded 23 basis points to 61 per cent. On a year-on-year basis, India mobile revenue and operating earnings grew 10 per cent and 11 per cent, respectively.
India capital expenditure, excluding Indus Towers, stood at Rs 7,400 crore compared to Rs 8,000 crore in the prior quarter, remaining within management guidance. Consolidated net debt rose 6 per cent sequentially to Rs 1.67 lakh crore following dividend payouts, while Airtel Business recorded an 11 per cent rise in revenue and a 15 per cent growth in operating profit.
“Improved visibility of future tariff hikes, coupled with subscriber mix improvement (2G to 4G/5G, prepaid to postpaid, higher data usage, international roaming) should continue to drive improvement in Bharti’s ARPUs,” the report said.
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