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GSM firms add 5 m users in Jan

GSM cellular service providers in the country have recorded an increase of over 5 million subscribers in January.

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Total telecom base likely to increase by 7 million

NEW DELHI: GSM (global system for mobile communications) cellular service providers in the country have recorded an increase of over 5 million subscribers in January. Notably, GSM subscriber additions had dropped to 4.6 million in December after having hit the 5 million mark for the first time in November.

Rival mobile camp — Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) — added  1.8 million (including WLL-fixed). This takes the total cellular additions to 6.8 million. Fixed line data from Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd are yet to come in. However, the total additions could well be 7 million, as predicted by communications minister Dayanidhi Maran recently.

Currently, the GSM base in India is at 110.5 million, up from 105.4 million in December 2006, a growth of 4.8%. According to the director general of Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), TV Ramachandran, the same growth trend is expected throughout the year. The CDMA base was at 45.8 million as of end-January.

Among the metros, Mumbai recorded the highest growth at 3.8%. C category towns witnessed the highest growth rate at 5.9%, followed by B circle towns at 5.4%.

Interestingly, Hutch, the fourth-largest operator in the country, which is up for sale, once again recorded a consistent growth of 1.05 million subscribers during January, taking its total subscriber base across 16 circles to 24.35 million as of January 31.

Although the Hutch sale talk had started in early December, the subscriber base grew by 1.03 million in that month. In November, the growth was a little less at 1 million.

In December 2006, a total of 6.48 mobile subscribers (GSM and CDMA) were added to the telecom pie, down from 6.8 million in November 2006. The total wireless subscriber base as of end of December was 149.50 million, while the total telecom users were 189.93 million.

Only six months ago, India had joined the 100-million-mobile club, including GSM and CDMA. Then, at the end of November, GSM subscriber base crossed 100 million. India is now placed third, after China and Russia, in GSM subscriber numbers. But, the country’s GSM base has grown the fastest in the world at over 21% in the past six months, according to industry statistics.

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