MTN bleeds subscribers along with Airtel, Glo, 9mobile
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
A total 7.45 million data subscribers deserted market leader MTN between November 2020 and October 2021 to headline industry losses that also hit the other three big players Airtel, Glo, and 9mobile.
The four major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) lost a combined 14.45 million data subscribers as their numbers dropped from 154,437,623 in November 2020 to 139,983,370 in October 2021, according to Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) figures.
MTN
MTN lost 7.45 million between November 2020 and October 2021. It had 58,317,291 in October 2021, down from 59,594,891 (July 2021) and 65,767, 750 (November 2020).
Airtel
Airtel lost 4.63 million in the period as its numbers slashed from 41,524,039 in November 2020 to 36,894,332 in October 2021.
9mobile
9mobile shed 1,437,305.
Glo
GloMobile lost 936,782
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Data experts told Nairametrics their views on why the major network carriers are losing data customers without corresponding loss in voice.
Wale Adebowale
“The drought is the result of a number of factors against the backdrop of the recent report of the Digital Quality of Life Index (DQL) 2021.
“The study ranked Nigeria at 56th position in the internet quality index due to low internet speeds.
“Nigeria has one of the slowest broadband connection speeds globally (13.45 Mbps), ranking 105th, and slightly faster mobile internet (17.91 Mbps), ranking 96th.
“However, the country’s broadband speed growth is one of the fastest on the planet, ranking 16th.”
“The study shows that Nigeria’s internet affordability is 90 per cent worse than the global average. People in Nigeria have to work the most time in the world – more than 35 hours – to afford the cheapest broadband internet.
Tosin Oluwole
“The decline in the number of data subscribers was caused largely by the high cost of internet in the country and the persistent poor quality of services rendered by the mobile firms.
“We should not be ignorant of the presence of smaller ISPs, who at times provide better services for their subscribers compared to their GSM counterparts.”
Backstory
Many subscribers still queue at National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) offices to obtain their National Identification Number (NIN) before they can use their lines.
Globacom had gained over 1 million internet subscribers in the third quarter of 2021, (Q3 2021) growing customer base to 38.9 million as of September, from 37.9 million at the beginning of the quarter.
MTN lost about 1.2 million subscribers in Q3 2021 as its data customer base dropped to 58.4 million from 59.6 million in Q2 2021, a decline of 2 per cent.
Another factor in the loss of subscribers is the suspension of registration of new lines as the government continues the nationwide NIN-SIM registration nationwide.