Vodafone Idea Q2 revenue slips on subscriber losses

BENGALURU: Indian telecom operator Vodafone Idea Ltd reported a 0.5% drop in second-quarter revenue on Thursday, as subscriber losses to rivals overshadowed benefits from a move to hike tariffs last year.

The company's subscriber base slipped to 271.8 million subscribers as of September-end from 311.1 million subscribers a year ago, indicating a decline in market share for the joint venture between Vodafone Group and India's Idea Cellular.

The debt-laden company re-branded itself last month and approved a fundraise of up to 250 billion rupees ($3.38 billion), as it looks for ways to pay about 500 billion rupees in government dues.

Quarterly average revenue per user at the country's third-largest telecom operator came in at 119 rupees, compared with 107 rupees a year earlier.

The loss-making firm's 4G subscriber base stood at 106.1 million for the period, compared with 104.6 million in the first quarter ended June 30.

Consolidated revenue fell to 107.91 billion rupees from 108.44 billion rupees a year earlier.

Consolidated loss came in at 72.18 billion rupees for the period ending Sept. 30, compared with a loss of 509.22 billion rupees a year earlier.