Glo Back To Second Largest Telecom Operator in Nigeria

9 years ago

Glo Back To Second Largest Telecom Operator in Nigeria

Nigeria’s national telecommunications carrier is back at the number two spot in terms of active subscriber base, according to the latest information released by the industry regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission.

Globacom reclaimed the spot it conceded briefly to Airtel a few months ago.

The latest information, which has been updated on NCC’s website, indicated that Glo’s subscriber base climbed up by 2.8 million new subscribers between February and June this year, the largest by any operator in the country within the period.

In essence, Glo had 27,327,646 subscribers on its network at the end of June, 2014. The figure translates to 21 per cent share of the Nigerian telecoms market, and places Glo second to MTN which has 56,516,759.

Airtel, which briefly occupied the second position early this year, falls to the third place with 25,302,160 subscribers and 20 per cent market share. Etisalat retains the fourth position with 19,390,285 customers which represents 15 per cent share of the market.

Instructively, while Glo and Etisalat made gains between the last time NCC released subscriber figures in February, and now, MTN and Airtel recorded losses. The figures for the operators as of the end of February were 57,183,745 for MTN, 26,194,336 for Airtel, 24,490,650 for Glo and 18,119,397 for Etisalat.

In effect, between end of February and June end, Glo added 2,836,996 new subscribers to its network, while Etisalat recorded 1,270,888 new customers. On the other hand, MTN lost 666,986 subscribers, while Airtel also lost 892,176 customers, the highest loss within the period.

Glo also retained its position as the network with the second largest Internet subscription in the country with 14.3m active subscriptions. MTN is in the first place with 34m, while Airtel and Etislat have 12m and 6.8m active Internet subscriptions respectively.

Industry sources believe that the massive network upgrade recently embarked upon by Glo and its bouquet of new service offerings may have given it the edge over other operators.

The network expansion involved swapping of old base stations with new ones and transformation of existing infrastructure into a state-of-the-art network software and hardware. It also involves achieving 90 per cent 3G coverage, the first in the industry, making it possible for Glo data subscribers across the country to experience significant service enhancement.

Meanwhile, it was a major laurel haul for Globacom Chairman, Dr. Mike Adenuga, and his companies, Glo Mobile and Glo I, at the at the 10th edition of the annual Nigerian Telecoms Awards held in Lagos on Saturday night.

The Globacom chairman bagged the award of the ‘Telecoms Investor of the Decade’ while Glo Mobile and Glo I emerged the ‘Best Telecoms Operator of the Year – Data’, ‘Most Innovative Telecoms Operator of the Year’, and ‘Best Submarine Company of the Year’, respectively.

The’ Telecoms Investor of the Decade’ award was the highpoint of the ceremony, and was presented by the Chairman, Board of Directors of the Nigerian Telecoms Awards, Chief Alex Akinyele and the Vice Chairman and former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel. The award was received on Adenuga’s behalf by the Director of Mike Adenuga Group, Mr. Niyi Adewunmi.
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According to the organisers, Adenuga was nominated on account of his “immense contributions to the growth of the telecommunications sector in the country” and was adjudged to take the award by a panel of assessors and judges.