Idea Cellular (Idea) delivered ahead of market expectations on the revenues front, while net profits did not rise as anticipated in the December quarter.

Key factors such as revenue per minute (RPM) remained stable, while the average revenue per user (ARPU) rose. Idea also improved the proportion of active subscribers in its network quite substantially during the quarter.

The company’s revenues rose 10.7 per cent in the December quarter over the same period last year to Rs 5578.5 crore, while net profits rose nearly 14 per cent to Rs 228.6 crore. Profits were hit by higher operating expenditure and increase in tax outflows.

Though there was an increase in the operating expenditure, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) margin has remained largely stable at 26.4 per cent.

The focus on adding higher value subscribers has been sustained by the company, as there was an increase in the number of 3G customers by a count of about 40 lakh. But the voice intensive 2G subscriber base has witnessed a net reduction for the second successive quarter, as the company churned less lucrative customers.

Riding on the festive season related mobile usage, Idea’s ARPU increased to Rs 158 from the Rs 148 reported in the previous quarter. The minutes of usage, too, rose substantially. The revenue per minute remained largely stable at 41.1 paisa.

The company has steadily increased the proportion of active users (those that recharge regularly and use mobile services regularly) in its network to 98.1 per cent currently, which is the highest among operators in the country.

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