Telecom major Bharti Airtel (Airtel) on Thursday reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 86 crore for the third quarter ending December 31, down 72 per cent as compared with Rs 306 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
However, revenue for the quarter rose marginally year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 20,519 crore during the October-December quarter, as against Rs 20,319 crore in the same period of 2017.
“Our simplified product portfolio and premium content partnerships have played out well during the quarter, translating into one of our highest ever 4G customer additions of 11 million plus. Our mobile data volume continues to expand, with a YoY growth of 190 per cent. We have deployed 24,000 broadband sites during the quarter and remain committed to invest in capacities ahead of the demand curve and provide a superior customer experience," Gopal Vittal, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, India & South Asia, Airtel, said.
"Effective this quarter, we have modified our customer base measurement to represent only transacting and revenue generating customers," he added.
Overall, the number of customers as of December 31 stood at 404 million across 16 countries, the company said.
Total capex spends for the quarter stood at Rs 6,568 crore and the year-to-date spends at Rs 22,469 crore, the company added.
“Airtel Africa’s gross revenue grew by 11.2 per cent on a YoY basis. Data traffic grew by 61 per cent, voice minutes increased by 25 per cent and Airtel Money throughput grew by 29 per cent on a YoY basis. Consequently, the EBITDA margin has expanded by 1.7 per cent YoY and stood at 37.2 per cent for the quarter. We continue to further invest in a strong LTE network to enhance customer experience and build competitive advantage,” Raghunath Mandava, MD and CEO, Africa, said.