Reliance Jio is already onto the task of introducing its FTTH service Reliance Jio GigaFiber, and we are sure that the telco plans to enter this territory with a bang. This is a threat to all the existing FTTH, and broadband providers in the market right now and a prominent name when it comes to FTTH services in the metro cities is ACT Fibernet. It is already known, that ACT has been introducing very attractive price revisions to its plans along with some changes to its portfolio as well, thus making its subscriptions worth the buck. In its latest move, the ISP has introduced an exciting referral program which will help the referrers and the referees in gaining good benefits, and on top of that ACT will also get more subscribers. Read ahead to know the details about the new ACT Fibernet referral programme.

Benefits of ACT Fibernet Referral Programme

The subscribers who want to use the ACT Fibernet referral scheme must do so via the ACT portal page or the ACT Fibernet page. The condition for getting the referral benefits mandates that the person who is referred by the ACT subscribers must complete the payment, for the referee to be eligible for the offer. After you have accessed the ACT portal page or app and ensured that your friend has made the payment to ACT, you can move on to counting the benefits which you will receive.

As per ACT’s website, the subscriber who refers and successfully fulfils the conditions mentioned above will be eligible to get a 25% discount only on “monthly tariff” of his or her plan. Whether the customer has a monthly subscription plan, 6 monthly or 12 monthly plan, the subscriber will get the 25% discount only on “monthly tariff”. Further, this referral benefit will be only applicable in cities of Tirupati, Nellore, Coimbatore, Bangalore and Delhi.

For ACT subscribers in Chennai, who make a successful referral, ACT will provide a 25% discount on the monthly tariff. On two successful referrals, the referrer will get 35% discount on their monthly tariff, whereas on three successful referrals, the subscribers will enjoy a 50% discount on their monthly tariff. For subscribers in Vizag, Guntur, Rajahmundry, Vijayawada and Eluru a successful referral will get them movie vouchers worth Rs 400. Lastly, subscribers in the Hyderabad circle will get Rs 250 as cashback in their PayTm account upon a successful referral.

Further, ACT has outlined that subscribers who make referrals on the website or ACT app will receive the benefit once in a month regardless of how many times they make a referral.

In the past few years, Hathway has become major broadband player besides being a prominent name in the cable TV sector. The operator has capitalised on the opportunity and has consistently rolled out attractive broadband plans and based on its existing cable subscriber base; it has amassed many customers for its fixed-line services. In the Hyderabad region, Hathway has a large subscriber base, and the provider ships offer there which come with absolutely no FUP whatsoever. The internet service provider has now introduced a new ‘Life Set Hai’ offer, under which subscribers will be able to get a Hathway broadband subscription for Rs 349 which will get them 50 Mbps speed with no FUP. The subscribers will also have the option of availing fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) connection as well. Hathway Broadband introduced this service in Hyderabad city at the moment.

Rs 349 ‘Life Set Hai’ Broadband Plan by Hathway

Notably, Hathway is advertising this plan as being priced at half of what the other broadband providers are offering. It is also worth noting that Hathway offers five more plans in the Hyderabad region besides this newly introduced plan of Rs 349 which is also the cheapest plan in Hathway’s broadband portfolio. The 25 Mbps plan of Hathway starts at a monthly rental of Rs 349, and this one also comes with no FUP like Hathway’s other plans. The six months and 12 months subscription of this plan will cost the subscribers Rs 2394 and Rs 4500 respectively. Hathway offered similar offer last year as well, but after a while, the plan’s price will be changed to the original price of Rs 499. However, under this new offer, there’s no such rollback on the price and benefits.

Other Broadband Plans in Hyderabad by Hathway

Next up, we have the 75 Mbps speed plan by Hathway which also starts at Rs 349 under Value subscription tag and is available for Rs 399 and Rs 449 under the Gold and Blast subscription banner. The six monthly and annual price for this plan is Rs 2649 and Rs 4788.

Going further up in Hathway’s portfolio we have the Freedom plan which offers 100 Mbps speed to Hathway subscribers and this plan is available for Rs 499 under the value subscription and for Rs 549 and Rs 599 under Gold and Blast subscription. The six monthly and annual rentals for this plan are Rs 3294 and Rs 5988 respectively. Lastly, the highest speed available in Hathway’s portfolio is under the Thunder plan which offers service at 125 Mbps. The various rental ladders under this plan start at Rs 549, Rs 599 and Rs 649. The six monthly and annual rentals for this plan are Rs 3594 and Rs 6588.

Overall, there are plenty of very attractively priced offerings for Hathway broadband subscribers in the Hyderabad region. For someone who is a heavy user, the Hathway plans work well as they offer speeds up to 125 Mbps and they also come with no FUP limits. The introduction of this new Rs 349 plan which offers 50 Mbps is a good call for subscribers who would like to browse the internet and go on only with their daily internet related work without spending a lot on their connection.

BSNL has unveiled a new Fibre-to-the-Home broadband plan under the Bharat Fibre programme it introduced a few days ago. The government-owned PSU is calling the new broadband plan as ‘40GB Plan‘ as it ships with 40GB daily data at 100 Mbps speeds for a month. The plan is priced at Rs 2,499, and for users who select it for six or 12 months, BSNL offers 25% cashback as part of its cashback offer valid until February 28. Furthermore, the 40GB daily data broadband plan from BSNL also ships with unlimited free calling to any network within India. This plan from BSNL joins the company’s existing FTTH plans of Rs 777, Rs 1,277, Rs 3,999, Rs 5,999, Rs 9,999 and Rs 16,999.

BSNL 40GB Plan Broadband Plan: Benefits and Details

As noted, this new 40GB Plan from BSNL falls into the company’s newly Bharat Fibre scheme. It provides a user 40GB of broadband data every day at 100 Mbps download and upload speeds. After the completion of daily FUP, speeds will be reduced to 2 Mbps and there’s no limit post the FUP. This plan is valid across the country where BSNL is offering FTTH services.

The price of this plan is Rs 2,499 and it sits between the Rs 1,277 and Rs 3,999 plans. For the unaware, the Rs 1,277 plan from BSNL offers 100 Mbps speeds with 500GB FUP, while the Rs 3,999 plan comes with 60 Mbps speeds till 650GB.

The 40GB Plan from BSNL also offers unlimited calling to any network within India like the other FTTH plans. Also, users can opt the plan for six months and 12 months with 25% cashback scheme. Sadly, BSNL is not offering this new plan in two and three-year rental period. Users will also get one free email ID and 1GB of free space. The telco has already waived off installation charges on FTTH plans, so you can choose this new plan by paying the monthly rental itself. In some circles, BSNL might ask for installation charges as well as the charges removal is a circle-specific offer.

BSNL 25% Cashback Scheme on Broadband Plans Explained

As mentioned above, BSNL is currently running a 25% cashback scheme on broadband plans. As part of this, users who choose a BSNL broadband plan for six or 12 months up front will be eligible for 25% cashback on the final rental. That said, there’s no maximum limit for the cashback offered. This essentially means if a user chooses the Rs 2,499 broadband plan for six months, then the cashback amount will be around Rs 3,700 and Rs 7,400 for 12 months.

This is a decent offer from BSNL as the plan also ships with unlimited calling benefit which will be useful for people in regions with struggling mobile network. BSNL has introduced the 40GB Plan on a pan-India basis and it’s effective from February 1, 2019.

BSNL is the leading wired broadband operator in India as the telco has over 10 million subscribers. However, in recent times, it’s losing the place to private operators especially because of the daily data scheme which didn’t go well with the subscribers. Notably, the newly launched 40GB Plan also falls under the daily data broadband plans from BSNL.

In yet another unusual move, state-run telecom operator, BSNL has now converted its six existing Fibre-to-the-Home broadband plans to offer daily data. Very recently, BSNL launched a Rs 2,499 high-speed broadband plan with a 40GB daily data limit. At the same time, it has converted the existing broadband plans to daily data plans. The BSNL FTTH plans which now got a revision are Rs 777, Rs 1,277, Rs 3,999, Rs 5,999, Rs 9,999 and Rs 16,999. BSNL is offering up to 170GB of data per day with speeds of 100 Mbps. This change from BSNL is already effective on a pan-India basis. Even if you’re an existing user, your plan will be converted according to the new revisions. Last year, the Internet Service Provider (ISP) had converted its non-FTTH broadband plans to offer daily data, and the move did not go well with the broadband users of BSNL.

BSNL FTTH Broadband Plans Converted to Daily Data Plans

Alongside the revision, BSNL has given new names to its FTTH plans. The BSNL Fibro Combo ULD 777 plan will now be called as ’18GB Plan’ as it offers 18GB of data per day with speeds up to 50 Mbps and 2 Mbps beyond the FUP. The price of the plan per month is Rs 777 excluding taxes. Moving onto the Fibro Combo ULD 1277 plan, it’s now called ’25GB Plan’ because it ships 25GB data per day at 100 Mbps speeds, and post the FUP, speeds will be reduced to 2 Mbps.

The Fibro Combo ULD 3999 or ’50GB Plan’ now provides a user 50GB data per day at 100 Mbps speeds and 4 Mbps beyond the FUP limit. BSNL’s Rs 5,999 FTTH broadband plan has been revised to offer 80GB data per day at the same 100 Mbps speeds and the speeds will be capped to 6 Mbps after the FUP.

Lastly, we have the Rs 9,999 and Rs 16,999 broadband plans which now offer 120GB and 170GB data per day at 100 Mbps speeds. The Rs 9,999 plan offers after FUP speeds of 8 Mbps, while the Rs 16,999 plan comes with 10 Mbps speeds.

Alongside the data benefit, BSNL is also providing unlimited voice calling to any network with the FTTH plans mentioned above. However, do make a note that BSNL is not providing FTTH service in most of the places, so check for the availability by contacting the company first.

BSNL Introduces Rs 2,499 FTTH Broadband Plan

Last week, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited has introduced a new ’40GB Plan’ of Rs 2,499 which sits between the Rs 1,277 and Rs 3,999 FTTH broadband plans. As the name itself suggests, the Rs 2,499 broadband plan from BSNL comes with 40GB data per day at 100 Mbps speeds, followed by the after FUP speeds of 2 Mbps. The 40GB Plan from BSNL also comes with unlimited voice calling benefit to any network across the country. BSNL has introduced the plan in all the circles where it’s providing FTTH services.

Non-FTTH Broadband Plans Also Converted by BSNL

Last year in December, BSNL has made its first major move in the broadband segment by converting its basic plans priced below Rs 2,500 to offer daily data limit. The ISP has increased the price of BB249 broadband plan to Rs 299 and started offering 1.5GB data per day at 8 Mbps upload and download speeds. It also revised other basic broadband plans such as Rs 675, Rs 845, Rs 999, Rs 1,199, Rs 1,495 and Rs 2,295 to offer daily data with up to 24 Mbps speeds.

ACT Fibernet is a prominent fixed line service provider in South India. In the last few months, the Internet Service Provider (ISP) has grown in leaps and bounds and has established a solid stronghold in cities like Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai. In these regions, ACT Fibernet boasts of having a large number of subscribers. However, even with a decent growth curve in its track record, currently ACT faces a threat from Reliance Jio’s upcoming FTTH service Reliance Jio GigaFiber. To prepare for the aftermath which will follow the launch of GigaFiber in these regions, ACT Fibernet is providing attractive offers, additional FUP and much more benefits to its subscribers. Some of the benefits which ACT ships are unique like the free Amazon Fire TV Stick which the users get with select plans of ACT Fibernet in select cities. In case, you are thinking of getting a new ACT connection, then, this article might help you get the best deal with the best benefits and a free Amazon Fire TV Stick.

Plans Offering Free Amazon Fire TV Stick

In its new move, ACT Fibernet has teamed up with Amazon to provide customers with a free Amazon Fire TV Stick at no additional cost. If you are planning to get an ACT Broadband subscription, then you should keep in mind that the offer which ships the free Amazon Fire TV Stick is not available on all plans and in all service regions of ACT Fibernet.

In Chennai region, subscribers of ACT Blast Promo, ACT Storm, ACT Incredible, ACT Thunder, ACT Lightning and ACT GIGA will get the Amazon Fire TV Stick for free. In Bengaluru, the Fire TV Stick will be given to subscribers of ACT Storm, ACT Lightning, ACT Incredible and ACT GIGA Plan. In Delhi, the offer will only be available on two plans of ACT Platinum Prom and ACT Diamond. Lastly, the offer is also valid in Hyderabad, where it will ship with the A-Max 1299, A-Max 1050, Incredible 1999 and ACT Giga plan. In other areas of Coimbatore, Eluru, Guntur, Madurai and Nellore, ACT is not currently shipping the Amazon Fire TV Stick offer.

The offer will also differ from region to region, and the subscribers will be able to avail the offer on either 1, 6, 12 or 24-month connection of ACT broadband. Subscribers of ACT Giga broadband plan can avail it even with a monthly subscription. For the unaware, ACT Fibernet is offering 1 Gbps broadband service in Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad cities.

This offer is valid for both new and existing subscribers of ACT Fibernet. Existing customers will have to upgrade to an eligible plan to avail the benefit.

ACT Fibernet Referral Programme Offering Up to 50% Discount on Monthly Tariff

Another offer by ACT Fibernet which the provider is shipping for its subscribers is the chance to refer and earn discounts. To win the referral, the ACT subscriber will have to refer their friend on the ACT portal page or app. It is crucial to keep in mind that the referral will be considered as done only when the person signs up for a new ACT connection and makes the payment. In regions of Tirupati, Nellore, Coimbatore, Bangalore and Delhi when the subscriber makes a successful referral they get 25% discount on their monthly tariff, on making two successful referrals they get 35% discount, whereas on making three successful referrals, the subscribers get 50% discount on their monthly tariff. In regions of Vizag, Guntur, Rajahmundry, Vijayawada and Eluru, referees will get the benefit of Rs 400 worth of movie vouchers, whereas, in Hyderabad circle, the subscribers will get Rs 250 as Paytm cashback on making a successful referral.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) today announced that its Bharat Fiber broadband plans will now ship with free Amazon Prime subscription worth Rs 999 with one-year validity. Earlier, the Internet Service Provider used to offer Amazon Prime membership with some of its non-FTTH broadband plans, but now, it has added the FTTH plans to the list as well. BSNL confirmed that all the Bharat Fiber broadband plans are eligible for the Amazon Prime offer. For the unaware, the Bharat Fiber Fibre-to-the-Home broadband plans start at Rs 777 and goes all the way up to Rs 16,999. Very recently, BSNL converted all its FTTH plans to offer daily data limit up to 170GB per day. BSNL is also providing Amazon Prime subscription with some of its postpaid plans.

BSNL Bharat Fiber Plans to Now Offer Amazon Prime Membership for Free

Amazon Prime membership is the e-commerce portal’s premium scheme that offers free shipping of products, Amazon Prime Video and Prime Music subscriptions at no additional cost. Usually, interested customers have to purchase the membership for Rs 999, but telcos are providing it for free with their postpaid and broadband plans.

Talking about the BSNL Bharat Fiber and Amazon Prime offer, users will get free subscription worth Rs 999 for free. All they have to do is subscribe to any of the Bharat Fiber FTTH plans from BSNL to avail the benefit.

As noted, the Bharat Fiber FTTH plans from BSNL start at Rs 777 and it provides 18GB data per day at 50 Mbps speeds. Next on the list, we have the Rs 1,277 Bharat Fiber plan offering 25GB data per day with 100 Mbps speeds. The other Bharat Fiber plans include the newly launched Rs 2,499 plan, Rs 3,999 plan, Rs 5,999 plan, Rs 9,999 plan and Rs 16,999 plan. The premium plan offers 170GB data per day. All the plans mentioned above now ship with free Amazon Prime membership for one year.

Commenting on this collaboration, Shri Vivek Banzal, Director CFA, BSNL said, “We understand the entertainment needs of our customers and have been putting together the technologies and products that work the best for our customers. Amazon Prime has been well accepted by Indian audience and we are hence giving the most preferred choice to our customers to own and enjoy the basket of benefits that Prime membership offers. We are doing more online engagements with customers as this brings enormous customer satisfaction and cuts down on our costs also in delivering excellent customer services.“Our new data plans introduced in December, bringing highest in industry speeds at most affordable rates, have been an incredible success, and we’re working hard to meet the incredible demand,” he said.

BSNL Bharat Fiber- Amazon Prime Membership: How to Activate?

Earlier, BSNL used to provide free Amazon Prime membership with its non-FTTH plans priced over Rs 695. The Amazon Prime activation process for Bharat Fiber is similar to the non-FTTH plans. BSNL confirmed that the annual Amazon Prime membership could be activated through the company’s official website. After activating, users can log into their Amazon account to check the Prime details. Additionally, they can download the Prime Video app to watch the latest content and Prime Music app offers the latest music across various categories.

BSNL Bharat Fiber: Why Does it Exist?

With the threat of Reliance Jio GigaFiber looming over the head of BSNL, the state-run telco has introduced a new programme called Bharat Fiber. This programme is for those who’re looking for high-speed broadband services from BSNL. The base plan of Rs 777 in Bharat Fiber comes with 50 Mbps while the premium plan provides 100 Mbps download & upload speeds.

ACT Fibernet which is India’s largest fibre broadband ISP has unveiled its new logo and a tagline. ACT in an event held in Delhi said that its new logo and tagline, “Feel the Advantage” is a strategic component of ACT Fibernet as it aims to become the most admired in-home entertainment and interactive internet services provider in India. The ISP also said that the new brand identity would represent ACT’s differentiated customer-centric approach and its futuristic vision. The brand will also be dedicated towards enhanced user experience, and it will work to provide maximum value to the consumers, ACT said. Further, ACT Fibernet also remarked on plans of expanding across various categories like ACT Advantage Entertainment, ACT Advantage Gaming, ACT Advantage Speed and more.

ACT to Also Equip Smart Cities with Wi-Fi Hotspots.

Speaking at the launch event, ACT Fibernet CEO, Bala Malladi also discussed the company’s plans. He said that ACT Fibernet would partner up with content providers like ZEE 5, Alt Balaji, and Sony Liv amongst others to also boost its content offering. Malladi also emphasised gaming as an integral part of ACT Fibernet’s offering. He said that the company would also partner up with gaming cafes, gaming OEMs and more to provide an exceptional gaming experience. The company also said that it is aiming to launch its broadband service in the North and West thus expanding its footprint across India. The CEO announced that in 2019, ACT Fibernet would also get a single toll free Customer care number countrywide which would make the company highly accessible to the consumers. The ISP would also support the government’s smart city project by providing upwards of 5000 wi-fi hotspots in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Vishakhapatnam and others.

New Logo to Symbolise Creativity and Innovation

On the occasion of the launch, Bala Malladi, CEO, ACT Fibernet remarked, “We have always believed in providing our customers the best solutions through our products and services. Today, consumer needs and usage behavior is continuously evolving. Newer technologies are constantly being adopted and becoming mass-scale by the day, be it streaming or gaming or smart homes. It is therefore our responsibility to work in conjunction with the rapidly evolving customer’s expectations and find feasible ways to serve them. We strongly believe that our new brand identity reflects this value and commitment we have towards our customers.

Moving forward, we will be launching new products and services that our consumer’s desire. We are confident that with our pioneering Fibernet connection, hyper-fast speeds, new offerings and industry’s best customer service in place, we will successfully transform our customer’s experience by enabling them to do and accomplish more. With ACT you can Feel the Advantage.”

GTPL Hathway has released its Q3 FY19 earnings report. The cable and broadband service provider revealed that its consolidated EBITDA for the quarter ending on December 31 has declined by 8% to Rs 83.3 crore against Rs 90.2 crore in the trailing quarter. The company’s margins also took a dip as they fell by 2.4% down to 26% from the previous quarter’s 28.4%. The net profit of the company, however, saw a rise by 17% QoQ (Quarter on Quarter) and it stood at Rs 19.7 crore instead of the previous Rs 16.8 crore. The consolidated revenue of the company, was however pretty stagnant as it only saw an increase of 1% and rested at Rs 319.9 crore as opposed to the previous Rs 317.4 crore. Cable TV subscriptions for Hathway also grew at the same rate and reached Rs 179.8 crore. Broadband and Placement revenue both went up by 1% and rested at 36.2 crore and Rs 71.2 crore respectively.

Rise in Pay Channel Costs for GTPL Hathway

Talking about the expenditure, the company highlighted that the expenses went up by 4% and were pegged at Rs 236.6 crore. Pay channel cost also went up in the same ratio, and it came out to be Rs 137.7 crore. The standalone profit of the company increased by 33% to Rs 13.5 crore. EBITDA also dropped by 6% stood at Rs 53.7 crore. The revenue was stagnant, and it stood at Rs 208 crore as against 205.2 crores. Expenditure also rose by 4%, and it rested at Rs 154.2 crore.

It is worth noting that in the given period, i.e. the third quarter of the FY, GTPL sold 300,000 set-top boxes (STBs) thus marking the total number of seeded STBs at 9.50 million. The subscriber addition reported by GTPL was 200,000 Active STB subscribers during the said period, making the active STB subscriber count touch eight million. The company has also added 170,000 digital paying subscribers during the quarter thus pegging the total digitally paying subscriber count to 7.45 million. In broadband, the company added 350,000 Home Passes in the third quarter thus pushing the total count of home passes to 2.15 million. Approximately 11,000 broadband subscribers came onboard with GTPL during Q3. The ARPU for broadband subscribers was Rs 430.

GTPL MD Expecting for Better Transparency After New Trai Order

GTPL Hathway MD Anirudhasinhji Jadeja said about the performance of the company, “In an environment of uncertainty, GTPL Hathway has continued to post steady performance. Our first 9-month revenue and PAT are up by 14% and 10% respectively; reflecting the inherent strength of the company’s offerings and quality customer service. The new tariff order has put customers at the centre of the business; providing them with the freedom to make their own choices. As India’s one of the leading MSOs, we expect higher monetisation across the phases and better transparency as a direct fall out of the new order.”

It is also worth noting that during the third quarter, GTPL was announced as the Project Implementation Agency (PIA) of Package B for implementation of BharatNet Phase – II, a project in the state of Gujarat by Gujarat Fibre Grid Network Limited (GFGNL). As part of this work, GTPL will connect 3,767 GPs (Gram Panchayat, Package B, Saurashtra region) by means of end-to-end Optic Fibre Cable and digital infrastructure at Centralised network operations centre of Gandhinagar in Gujarat.

Atria Convergence Technologies, also known as ACT Fibernet, recently revamped its brand logo and its vision for the next year. As part of the same, the popular Internet Service Provider (ISP) which has its operations in 16 Indian cities has started providing free 100GB data to its broadband subscribers. Last week, ACT Fibernet held a special event at New Delhi during which it stated there are a lot of exciting things to happen over the next 6-12 months. To kickstart the same, ACT has now started crediting free data to its subscribers across the country. Users can check out the 100GB data benefit added to their account via the ACT Fibernet mobile app. The 100GB free data credit has been personally verified by TelecomTalk.

ACT Fibernet Broadband Users to Get Additional 100GB Data for a Month

This additional data offer from ACT Fibernet is valid for all the subscribers across the country where it’s providing services. So if you’re on the Rs 1,050 plan of ACT Fibernet in Hyderabad, your monthly data benefit will be 750GB, but with this offer, the data for one month becomes 850GB. And if you reside in cities such as Bengaluru, Chennai where ACT is providing additional 300GB data per month with its broadband plans, then your additional data for this month would be 400GB. It’s unknown for how many months ACT will deliver the extra 100GB data, but for now, we believe it could be valid for only one month.

“Over the last ten years, we have grown from pioneers of fibre to the home to leaders in the industry. With the changing digital world, we are transforming too. With our hyper-fast speeds, pioneering technology, and friendly customer care, we are ready to enable you to make the best of this new digital world. All so that, with ACT Fibernet, you feel the advantage,” says ACT Fibernet.

As noted, customers can head over to the ACT Fibernet mobile app to check whether the additional data is credited to your account or not.

What to Expect from ACT Fibernet in 2019?

At its recently concluded event in New Delhi, ACT Fibernet has revamped its brand strategy for the year 2019, and it promises very big things. Things are expected to stir up in the Indian broadband industry this year as Reliance Jio is foraying into the segment with its Jio GigaFiber high-speed wired broadband service. BSNL has introduced ‘Bharat Fiber’ service to offer high-speed plans to the subscribers. And for ACT Fibernet, it’s planning to rack up the Digital Offerings.

The first and foremost thing which we expect from ACT Fibernet this year is the Data Carry Forward option. Bharti Airtel, YOU Broadband and Spectra already launched this feature for their consumers and it’s now the turn of ACT Fibernet to bring the same. The ISP is already running an additional data offer which will expire on February 28, 2019, but it will surely extend the offer for another six months.

Time by time, ACT is shipping some media streaming device with its yearly or six-month broadband plans. Earlier, it offered Google Home Mini speaker, and very recently, it has brought the Amazon Fire TV Stick offer.

MTNL, the state-led telecom operator will lose its spot to Hathway Cable and Datacom as the private broadband service provider materialises its expansion plan. After surpassing MTNL, Hathway will gain the fourth spot in top broadband providers of India. Going by the telecom subscription data report for December compiled by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), MTNL and Hathway have tied with 0.78 million wired broadband customers each. At the same time, MTNL has been losing out on its subscribers which has also led to Hathway’s rise in ranks. To recall, back in September 2017, Hathway had surpassed Vodafone owned You Broadband to become the fifth largest broadband player in the country.

Hathway Sees Increase in Broadband Income

As per the data available on December 31,2018, the top five wired Broadband Service providers were BSNL with 9.17 million subscribers, Bharti Airtel with 2.27 million subscribers, Atria Convergence Technologies with 1.39 million subscribers, MTNL with 0.78 million subscribers and Hathway Cable & Datacom at 0.78 million subscribers. Also, what’s worth noting is that MTNL has reported the same number of subscribers in December as it had reported for November.

As per the financial stats put out by Hathway, the broadband and cable service provider registered a profit of Rs 6.5 crore as opposed to the loss of Rs 5.9 crore in the trailing quarter. Operating EBITDA declined 5% QoQ to Rs 51.3 crore compared to Rs 53.8 crore.  The income from broadband subscription for Hathway went up by 3% to Rs 134.9 crore from Rs 130.6 crore. The total expenditure of the company soared by 9% and rested Rs 83.6 crore from Rs 76.8 crore.

In the concerning quarter, the broadband service provider made 15,000 Home passes thus raising the number of Home passes to 5.54 million. It added 15,000 subscribers QoQ basis taking the total subscriber base to 780,000. ARPU of the company went down to Rs 662 from Rs 672 which was the number a quarter ago. The ARPU for the newly added customers was slightly higher at Rs 700 excluding taxes.

Increase in Average Speed Better for Industry

The average speed for broadband consumption went up to 0.75 Mbps in December from 0.72 Mbps in November thus signalling a healthy long term trend from the wireline industry relevance perspective.

Speaking about the industry-wide statistics received from 308 operators in December 2018, as compared to 306 operators in the previous month, the broadband subscriber count went up from 511.90 million at the end of Nov-18 to 518.55 million at the end of Dec-18 translating to a monthly growth rate of 1.30%. The top five service providers constituting of Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd, Vodafone Idea, Bharti Airtel, BSNL and Tata Tele. Group made up for 98.57% of the market share.