Marbridge Daily

China's Three Main Telcos Add 14 Mln 5G Subs in May 2023

Marbridge Consulting, 6/20/23

The listed arms of China's three main telecom operators have announced their subscriber totals for the month of May 2023, including a combined net increase of approximately 14.12 mln 5G package subscribers in China, boosting their combined 5G package subscriber base to over 1.227 bln. As of the end of May, 5G package subscribers accounted for 72.5% and 71.9% of the total mobile subscriber bases of China Telecom and China Mobile, respectively.

China Mobile

China Mobile (0941.HK; 600941.SH) reported a net gain of just 0.33 mln mobile subscribers during the month, raising the telecom operator's total mobile user base to 983.11 mln. China Mobile increased its 5G package subscriber base by 8.15 mln to reach a total of 706.96 mln.

China Mobile defines a 5G package customer as a mobile customer who has subscribed to 5G tariff plans. Customers sharing 5G tariff plans without subscription are not included in the operator's 5G subscriber totals.

China Mobile saw a net gain of 1.66 mln fixed-line broadband subscribers (registered accounts) in May, raising its total fixed-line broadband user base to 284.44 mln.

China Telecom

China Telecom (0728.HK; 601728.SH) saw a net increase of 0.93 mln mobile subscribers in May, raising its total to 401.12 mln, of which 290.62 mln were 5G package subscribers. During the month, the operator's 5G user base rose by 3.39 mln subscribers.

China Telecom lost 0.39 mln fixed-line telephone subs in May, reducing its total to 103.25 mln.

China Telecom reported an increase of 0.83 mln fixed-line broadband subscribers (registered accounts) during the month, boosting its total to 185.65 mln.

China Unicom

China Unicom (0762.HK; 600050.SH) reported that as of the end of May 2023, its aggregate number of "Big Connectivity" subscribers reached 917.88 mln, up 8.92 mln month-on-month and up 56.13 mln since the end of 2022. China Unicom's "Big Connectivity" category is comprised of the operator's combined total aggregate mobile billing subscribers, fixed-line telephone subscribers, fixed-line broadband subscribers, Internet-of-things terminal connections, and networking leased line subscribers. Of this total, 229.63 mln were 5G package subscribers, representing a net gain of 2.59 mln month-on-month and 16.90 mln since the end of 2022; and 432.59 mln were Internet-of-things terminal connections, up 8.47 mln month-on-month and up 47.05 mln since the end of 2022.

China Unicom also reported that its number of customers served by virtual 5G industry private network for the month of May was 5,325, up 507 month-on-month. A virtual 5G industry private network is a high-quality private network based on the public 5G network provided to industry customers to satisfy their business and security needs. It is a core carrier for offering differentiated and partially self-operated network services. Virtual 5G industry private network is a key metric in the government's "5G Applications 'Sailing' Action Plan (2021-2023)."

Mobile Subscriber Stats for China's Three Main Carriers (Unit: Mln)

Keywords: national statistics wireless China Telecom China Mobile China Unicom fixed-line Internet broadband telecom mobile subscribers 5G broadband subscribers 0728.HK 0762.HK 0941.HK 600050.SH 601728.SH 600941.SH telecom operator fixed-line subscribers