Jio Platforms net profit jumps 47% in January-March quarter to Rs 3,508 cr

On a sequential basis, it was a weak show with a fall in ARPU, flat profit growth

Reliance Jio Platform’s net profit rose 47.5 per cent to Rs 3,508 crore in January-March quarter on a year-on-year (YoY) basis on the back of faster customer additions. In the same quarter last year, the company had posted a net profit of Rs 2,379 crore.
 
Revenue from operations grew 18.9 per cent YoY basis to Rs 18,278 crore while earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) rose 36 per cent to Rs 8,573 crore.
 
On a sequential basis, however, Jio's result was weak as discontinuation of interconnect usage charges (IUC) resulted in 6.1 per cent decline in revenue from operations and a near flat profit growth.
 
Telecom companies used to pay an IUC of six paise per minute for calls made from their network to other service providers. The IUC was discontinued from January 1 on orders of telecom sector regulator and this led to a drop in both the revenue and average revenue per user (ARPU) sequentially. ARPU declined to Rs 138.2 in Q4 FY 21 from Rs 151 from the third quarter. Another factor for drop in ARPU was fewer number of days in the fourth quarter, the company said.
 
While the sequential decline in ARPU was in line with Axis Securities and J M Financial Research estimates revenue decline was slower than their projection.
 

During the quarter Jio saw a strong rebound in customer additions. The company added 15.4 million net subscribers in the fourth quarter compared to an addition of 5.2 million subscribers in the third quarter.
 
Jio had blamed malicious motivated campaigns against the company for the slower customer growth in the third quarter.
 
Total customer base of the company increased to 426.2 million at the end of March quarter, the company said. In February, Jio launched a new bundled offer giving customers handset, upto two years of unlimited free calls and 2GB data per month and this is believed to have led to subscriber additions.
 
Churn reduced during the quarter to 1.26 per cent on the back of focused sales initiatives and reducing Covid-19 impact in parts of the country during the quarter. During 4Q FY21, average data consumption per user per month was strong at 13.3 GB and average voice consumption was at 823 minutes per user per month.
 
“Jio has a highly engaged 426 million customer base and remains committed to enhancing digital experiences not only for our existing customers but, for all individuals, households, and enterprises across the country. With its path defining partnerships over the last couple of years, Jio will continue to strive towards making India a premier digital society,” Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani said in a statement.
 
“Covid has brought new challenges for the country. Jio’s on-the-ground teams are working tirelessly to address all issues for ensuring seamless customer service. Jio’s focus remains on making lives easy for all citizens through our digital solutions, while ensuring safety of our employees and partners,” he added.