Tariff hike may cause slower net user addition for telcos: BofA-ML report

The consequences of tariff hike by operators could be continued SIM consolidation leading to slower net additions for the industry, broking firm Bank Of America Merrill Lynch (BofAML) said on Wednesday.

“After steady 8-9 million subscriber additions in the last few months, Jio net adds for September slowed to 6.9 million. We remain uncertain if this was led by the tariff change impact or a one-off slowing month,” the BofAML report said.

“Bharti and VIL Vodafone Idea Ltd) showed negative net adds in Sept-19. In the coming months as telcos take tariff hikes, we see continued SIM consolidation leading to slower net adds for the industry”, the broking house said in its analysis of the consequence of the tariff hike decided by the companies.