Airtel's DTH business reports 9% drop in Q2 revenue as subscriber churn continues
The company's DTH arm saw its subscriber base drop to 15.8 million at the end of Q2'23 compared to 16.3 million in the same quarter last year
Telecom giant Bharti Airtel's direct-to-home (DTH) business has seen a 9% drop in revenue at Rs 728.8 crore for the quarter ended 30th September as against Rs 797.9 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal due to a drop in the subscriber base by over 0.5 million.
The DTH arm's customer base dropped to 15.8 million at the end of Q2’23 compared to 16.3 million in the corresponding quarter last year. ARPU for the quarter was Rs 155 as compared to Rs 163 in the corresponding quarter last year. The company operates its DTH business under the Airtel Xstream brand.
EBITDA for the company's DTH arm shrank by 18% to Rs 435.2 crore from Rs 531.4 crore. The reported EBITDA margin was at 59.7% in the current quarter as compared to 66.6%. The reported EBIT nosedived by 64% to Rs 78.5 crore from Rs 220.4 crore.
During the quarter, the company incurred 18% higher capital expenditure at Rs 305.4 crore compared to Rs 257.8 crore. Operating free cash flow was down 53% to Rs 129.8 crore from Rs 273.6 crore.
Airtel's DTH platform offers a total of 696 channels including 84 HD channels (including 1 HD SVOD service), 59 SVOD services, 5 international channels, and 4 interactive services.
The telecom operator's revenue from the broadband segment was up 39% to Rs 989.8 crore as compared to Rs 712.7 crore. The company accelerated LCO partnerships in non-wired cities, taking up the LCO partnership model live in 974 cities.
EBITDA for the quarter jumped 32% to Rs 498.3 crore from Rs 377.9 crore. EBITDA margin stood at 50.3% during the quarter as against 53%. EBIT rose 76% to Rs 220.3 crore as compared to Rs 125.2 crore. The resultant EBIT margin was at 22.3% as compared to 17.6%.
During the quarter, the company incurred capital expenditure of Rs 588.6 crore against Rs 350 crore.
As on September 30, 2022, the company had broadband operations in 1,060 cities (including LCOs). The company achieved the 5+ million customer milestone with customer net additions of 417,000 during the quarter to reach a total base of 5.21 million in Q2’23. On a YoY basis, the customer base increased by 36.4%.
The DTH arm's customer base dropped to 15.8 million at the end of Q2’23 compared to 16.3 million in the corresponding quarter last year. ARPU for the quarter was Rs 155 as compared to Rs 163 in the corresponding quarter last year. The company operates its DTH business under the Airtel Xstream brand.
EBITDA for the company's DTH arm shrank by 18% to Rs 435.2 crore from Rs 531.4 crore. The reported EBITDA margin was at 59.7% in the current quarter as compared to 66.6%. The reported EBIT nosedived by 64% to Rs 78.5 crore from Rs 220.4 crore.
During the quarter, the company incurred 18% higher capital expenditure at Rs 305.4 crore compared to Rs 257.8 crore. Operating free cash flow was down 53% to Rs 129.8 crore from Rs 273.6 crore.
Airtel's DTH platform offers a total of 696 channels including 84 HD channels (including 1 HD SVOD service), 59 SVOD services, 5 international channels, and 4 interactive services.
The telecom operator's revenue from the broadband segment was up 39% to Rs 989.8 crore as compared to Rs 712.7 crore. The company accelerated LCO partnerships in non-wired cities, taking up the LCO partnership model live in 974 cities.
EBITDA for the quarter jumped 32% to Rs 498.3 crore from Rs 377.9 crore. EBITDA margin stood at 50.3% during the quarter as against 53%. EBIT rose 76% to Rs 220.3 crore as compared to Rs 125.2 crore. The resultant EBIT margin was at 22.3% as compared to 17.6%.
During the quarter, the company incurred capital expenditure of Rs 588.6 crore against Rs 350 crore.
As on September 30, 2022, the company had broadband operations in 1,060 cities (including LCOs). The company achieved the 5+ million customer milestone with customer net additions of 417,000 during the quarter to reach a total base of 5.21 million in Q2’23. On a YoY basis, the customer base increased by 36.4%.
