GP adds highest 5.30m new clients in 2009-10 fiscal
Sunday, 25 July 2010
Sonia H Moni
Grameenphone (GP) has included 5.30 million new subscribers in its network in the 2009-10 fiscal, the highest among the country's six mobile operators.
GP Deputy CEO and CFO Raihan Shamsi told the FE: "Launching a number of new packages, providing quality services and re-organising rural and urban distribution line have helped to push up its growth to take the total subscriber base to 26.46 million."
"One year ago the number of GP subscribers was 21.16 million, and now we have expanded to newer rural areas. GP's presence can be felt more strongly now with the launching of our new package named 'Badhon' with low-cost handsets."
He said, "We have netted 2.6 million new subscribers in the second quarter of 2010, which is the highest-ever growth since GP's inception. At this moment we are covering 44 per cent of the country's total mobile market."
Mr Shamsi also said, "SIM tax, which is limiting the growth of the mobile industry as well as hampering the progress of bridging the digital divide, has been overlooked in the approved National Budget for 2010-11."
GP paid Tk 35.81 billion revenues for the first half of 2010 with 12 per cent hike from the first half of 2009. The total revenue for the second quarter of 2010 was Tk 18.77 billion, up by 15 per cent from the same period of 2009, a GP official said.
The total number of mobile users of the country's six operators reached 59.98 million on June 30, 2010, which was 46.29 million at the same period in 2009, according to Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).
The total number of subscribers of Banglalink stood at 16.10 million at the end of the last fiscal, as the company added 5.06 million new consumers in one year.
"Banglalink achieved the second position on the basis of subscription. Mainly network expansion, better customer service and new innovation helped to boost the subscribers number," a Banglalink official told the FE.
"We have introduced mobile remittance services for the first time in the south Asian countries, and it is a big achievement for us."
He added that though the situation is not favourable for the mobile phone operators due to the new Telecom Act, but we have increased the number of subscribers. However, it would be hard to expand further.
The subscriber base of Robi, which was previously known as Aktel, reached 11.10 million at the end of June, as it added 2.25 million subscribers in one year.
Warid Telecom, the greater part of which was recently acquired by India's Bharati Airtel, added 0.59 million subscribers in a year, and the total number of its subscribers reached 3.17 million at the end of the last financial year.
Meanwhile, the state-owned mobile phone operator Teletalk added only 0.06 million subscribers in a year, and the number of its total subscribers was 1.16 million at the end of June.
The subscriber base of City Cell, the lone CDMA mobile operator, reached 1.99 million, as it added only 0.03 million subscribers in a year.
Grameenphone (GP) has included 5.30 million new subscribers in its network in the 2009-10 fiscal, the highest among the country's six mobile operators.
GP Deputy CEO and CFO Raihan Shamsi told the FE: "Launching a number of new packages, providing quality services and re-organising rural and urban distribution line have helped to push up its growth to take the total subscriber base to 26.46 million."
"One year ago the number of GP subscribers was 21.16 million, and now we have expanded to newer rural areas. GP's presence can be felt more strongly now with the launching of our new package named 'Badhon' with low-cost handsets."
He said, "We have netted 2.6 million new subscribers in the second quarter of 2010, which is the highest-ever growth since GP's inception. At this moment we are covering 44 per cent of the country's total mobile market."
Mr Shamsi also said, "SIM tax, which is limiting the growth of the mobile industry as well as hampering the progress of bridging the digital divide, has been overlooked in the approved National Budget for 2010-11."
GP paid Tk 35.81 billion revenues for the first half of 2010 with 12 per cent hike from the first half of 2009. The total revenue for the second quarter of 2010 was Tk 18.77 billion, up by 15 per cent from the same period of 2009, a GP official said.
The total number of mobile users of the country's six operators reached 59.98 million on June 30, 2010, which was 46.29 million at the same period in 2009, according to Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).
The total number of subscribers of Banglalink stood at 16.10 million at the end of the last fiscal, as the company added 5.06 million new consumers in one year.
"Banglalink achieved the second position on the basis of subscription. Mainly network expansion, better customer service and new innovation helped to boost the subscribers number," a Banglalink official told the FE.
"We have introduced mobile remittance services for the first time in the south Asian countries, and it is a big achievement for us."
He added that though the situation is not favourable for the mobile phone operators due to the new Telecom Act, but we have increased the number of subscribers. However, it would be hard to expand further.
The subscriber base of Robi, which was previously known as Aktel, reached 11.10 million at the end of June, as it added 2.25 million subscribers in one year.
Warid Telecom, the greater part of which was recently acquired by India's Bharati Airtel, added 0.59 million subscribers in a year, and the total number of its subscribers reached 3.17 million at the end of the last financial year.
Meanwhile, the state-owned mobile phone operator Teletalk added only 0.06 million subscribers in a year, and the number of its total subscribers was 1.16 million at the end of June.
The subscriber base of City Cell, the lone CDMA mobile operator, reached 1.99 million, as it added only 0.03 million subscribers in a year.