MTNL has emerged as the fastest growing GSM operator in Delhi and Mumbai. Since January 2005 not only has MTNL doubled its GSM subscriber base in both these metros, the public sector operator has also garnered more subscribers than any of its private competitors. In Delhi, if MTNL keeps up with this growth, it may surpass Idea Cellular by the middle of next year to become the third largest operator.

From January to November 2005, while MTNL added close to 3.5 lakh subscribers, Bharti and Hutch have added around 2.5 lakh each respectively in Delhi. The difference is starker in Mumbai where MTNL has added 4 lakh subscribers, more than the additions of BPL Mobile and Hutchison Max put together.

The compounded monthly growth rate of MTNL at close to 6% is unmatched by any of the private operators growing at not more than 3-4% compunded monthly. Moreover, the gap between MTNL and other players has been narrowing. The difference between the subscriber numbers of Idea and MTNL, for instance, has nearly halved in the last twelve months in Delhi.

At present levels of growth, MTNL could emerge as the third largest operator in Delhi, after Bharti and Hutch. In November 2005, the total subscriber base of Idea Cellular, the third largest cellular operator in Delhi, stood at 788,234 in the capital, compared with 659,948 of MTNL.

With highly competitive tariff plans, MTNL has been able to penetrate the price sensitive segment of the market. A comparison of the cheapest postpaid tariff packages of the operators in Delhi shows that MTNL’s monthly tariff at around Rs 710 for its budget plan is lower than the average of over Rs 800 for other operators.

However, MTNL’s over-all revenues have dropped in the first half of this financial year. Mobile revenues, although growing, still constitute a relatively small proportion of the company’s sales, as the bulk is held by basic services.

(http://economictimes.indiatimes.com)