China's Three Main Telcos Add 16 Mln 5G Subs in October 2023
Marbridge Consulting, 11/21/23
The listed arms of China's three main telecom operators have announced their subscriber totals for the month of October 2023, including a combined net increase of approximately 16.00 mln 5G package subscribers in China, boosting their combined 5G package subscriber base to over 1.322 bln. As of the end of October, 5G package subscribers accounted for 76.6% of each China Telecom's and China Mobile's total mobile subscriber bases.
China Mobile
China Mobile (0941.HK; 600941.SH) reported a net gain of 0.75 mln mobile subscribers during the month, raising the telecom operator's total mobile user base to 990.78 mln. China Mobile increased its 5G package subscriber base by 8.41 mln to reach a total of 758.78 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's total number of fixed-line broadband subscribers (registered accounts) rose to 296.38 mln in October, representing a net increase of 1.70 mln during the month, and 24.21 mln since the beginning of the year.
China Telecom
China Telecom (0728.HK; 601728.SH) saw a net increase of 0.83 mln mobile subscribers in October, raising its total to 406.64 mln, of which 311.32 mln were 5G package subscribers. During the month, the operator's 5G user base rose by 3.71 mln subscribers.
China Telecom lost 0.39 mln fixed-line telephone subs in October, reducing its total to 101.74 mln.
China Telecom reported an increase of 0.36 mln fixed-line broadband subscribers (registered accounts) during the month, boosting its total to 189.62 mln.
China Unicom
China Unicom (0762.HK; 600050.SH) reported that as of the end of October 2023, its aggregate number of "Big Connectivity" subscribers reached 968.89 mln, up 9.59 mln month-on-month and up 107.14 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, 251.94 mln were 5G package subscribers, representing a net gain of 3.87 mln month-on-month and 39.22 mln since the end of 2022; and 474.39 mln were Internet-of-things terminal connections, up 7.35 mln month-on-month and up 88.85 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 October was 7,441, up 544 month-on-month. 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)
Operator | October 2023 Month-end Total | % of Combined Installed 5G Sub Base | October 2023 Net Change | Net Change Since Prior Year-End |
---|---|---|---|---|
China Mobile | 990.78 | 0.75 | 15.77 | |
5G Package Subs | 758.78 | 57.39% | 8.41 | 144.77 |
China Telecom | 406.64 | 0.83 | 15.46 | |
5G Package Subs | 311.32 | 23.55% | 3.71 | 43.36 |
China Unicom | ||||
5G Package Subs | 251.94 | 19.06% | 3.87 | 39.22 |
On September 28, Yang Guorui, deputy director of China's National Radio and Television Administration, announced that the 5G subscriber base of China's fourth 5G telecom network operator, China Broadnet, had recently exceeded 18 mln, but since then, no further update of Broadnet's 5G subscriber total has been issued. Broadnet officially launched 5G network services just 17 months ago, on June 27, 2022. Because Broadnet is not yet reporting its 5G subscriber totals on a regular, monthly basis, Marbridge is not yet integrating its totals with those of China's three more established telecom operators above.
Keywords: wireless national statistics 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 Broadnet fixed-line subscribers