GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, has revealed the top 20 telecom operators in the Asia Pacific region based on their revenue in 2020.
Increase in average revenue per user (ARPU), growth in the number of mobile subscribers coupled with higher data service usage enabled the top 20 telecom operators in Asia-Pacific to report average growth in revenue of over 2.5 percent in 2020.

Telecom operators saw a steep spike in data traffic and increased use of broadband services as people increasingly relied on connected devices throughout 2020.

Among the top 20 telecom operators, 65 percent reported growth in revenue with five service providers reported growth of more than 5 percent in 2020. Bharti Airtel (Airtel), PLDT and SoftBank topped the list with each registering double-digit growth in revenue.

Airtel, which reported 11.4 percent growth in customer base, posted highest revenue in the financial year. Airtel’s revenue from mobile services grew 21 percent with the addition of more than 43 million 4G customers. Airtel recorded growth in demand for its home broadband, DTH and enterprise businesses.

PLDT registered growth in revenue thanks to higher revenue from data services in wireless and fixed line business segments.

SoftBank posted revenue growth in 2020 due to increase in retail consumer revenue, mainly broadband service revenue. Besides, SoftBank reported growth due to increase in royalty and license revenue from the Arm segment.

LG Uplus recorded over 5 percent growth in 2020 thanks to increase in service revenue due to higher consumer and enterprise infrastructure sales, backed by the addition of wireless and 5G subscribers.

CK Hutchison and Vodafone Idea were the only companies in the list, which reported over 10 percent decline in revenue.

Though CK Hutchison’s Asian telecom business posted 25 percent increase in active customer accounts and 2 percent revenue growth, decline in sales in major segments including retail, ports, and infrastructure led to a decrease in revenue.