Mobile internet subscription drops to 20-month low

Mobile operators have lost more than 1.3 crore internet subscribers since June 2024, resulting in a drop to 11.6 crore active mobile internet users in January, the lowest since May 2023.

According to the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), the four mobile operators' internet subscribers peaked at 12.92 crore in June last year and a gradual decline dragged it to the present level.

Operators blamed persisting inflation and a rise in SIM tax in July last year for the loss of internet subscribers.

"The number of unique mobile phone users is unlikely to drop," said Banglalink Chief Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Officer Taimur Rahman.

"People tend to use multiple SIMs for convenience and better deals, they are spending less than before amid inflationary pressure," he said.

One using mobile internet at least once in three months is considered to be an active mobile internet subscriber.

SIM tax paid by operators was up by Tk50 to Tk300 in the last budget that forced smaller operators to cut SIM subsidies, resulting in a decline in their new SIM sales, said Taimur.

New SIM often offers lucrative packages and many users opt for those, often leaving the previous ones dormant, according to him.

"But, the price hike of new SIMs is discouraging this tendency. Consumers' spending cuts also hurt operators' revenue," Taimur added.

Not only mobile internet subscription, but also the number of active mobile connections dropped to a 20-month low of 18.659 crore in January that peaked at 19.62 crore in June last year.

However, the fixed broadband user base expanded to 1.4 crore in January, up from 1.29 crore a year ago which helped arrest the drop in the total number of internet connections in the country to a one-year low of 13 crore, which peaked at 14.22 in last June, according to the BTRC.