Jio Platform Ltd’s (JPL) fiscal first quarter net profit increased 12.5% year on year, but the rate of growth at its primary telecom sector slowed due to increasing depreciation, amortisation, and network operating costs, as well as the absence of pricing hikes despite substantial subscriber additions.
JPL’s consolidated net profit increased to Rs 5098 crore in the April-June 2023 quarter, up from Rs 4984 crore in the January-March 2023 period and Rs 4,530 crore in the first quarter of the previous fiscal year, thanks to decreased spectrum usage charges (SUC) and an increase in average revenue per user (ARPU).
The Reliance Industries subsidiary reported an 11.3% growth in revenue from operations year on year to Rs 26, 115 crore, owing to a consistent increase in subscriber base and ARPU. In the June quarter, net earnings for Reliance Jio Infocomm, Jio Platforms’ telecom unit, increased 12.18% year on year to Rs 4863 crore.
Its operating revenue jumped 9.9% to Rs 24042 crore, while total costs increased 9%. Higher costs and a lack of rate increases slowed the telecom industry leader’s net profit and revenue growth to their slowest pace in six quarters. Despite adding 9.2 million users to its network in the June 2023 quarter, the telco’s net subscriber gain accelerated from 6.4 million in the December 2022 quarter.
As of June 30, Jio had 448.5 million total subscribers.
Quarterly ARPU, a key performance metric, grew to Rs 180.5 from Rs 178.8 in the fourth quarter of FY 23 due to improved subscriber mix, increased data consumption, and the ramp-up of wireline services, according to the firm. It was slightly more than the street estimate of Rs 180.25.
Per capita data usage increased to 25GB per month per user, up from 23.1GB in the preceding quarter. This, according to management during an earnings webcast, was due to the penetration of 5G among Jio’s subscribers, which was hastened by events such as the Indian Premier League, which was heavily consumed on digital.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) climbed 14.8% year on year to Rs 13,116 crore due to sales growth and margin improvement, with EBITDA margin increasing by 150 basis points. JPL, which was founded in October 2019, houses Reliance Jio Infocomm, the country’s largest telecom service provider, as well as the group’s other digital propelties and investments. JPL’s operations are dominated by Reliance Jio.
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