GSM subscribers hit 187m as demand for digital devices soars

Nigeria’s subscription number for mobile telecommunications services has soared to 187.15 million in February, the latest monthly report on subscribers obtained from the Nigerian Communications Commission has shown.

This is an eight per cent year-on-year growth in subscribers as the industry had 173.28 million users in February 2019.

The NCC statistics also showed that Internet users grew by 15 per cent from 114,725,357 in February 2019 to 131,647,895 in February this year.

The industry statistics showed that the telcos gained 1.4 million new subscribers in one month as the industry had recorded 185.74 million GSM users in January.

The data showed that MTN gained the highest number of subscribers in the period under review, adding 1.78 million subscribers to its network to reach 72.47 million customers.

However, the company lost 1,058 GSM users on its Visafone spectrum to reach 137,086 subscribers in February. Airtel added 490,389 new customers to reach 50.49 million users while Globacom gained 48,798 new subscribers in February, recording a total of 51.8 million GSM users.

9mobile was the only operator that lost subscribers in February as 913,733 GSM users left its network, dropping to 12.24 million mobile phone users.

NCC February report indicated that MTN remained Nigeria’s largest mobile network operator with 38.73 per cent market share and Globacom is still the country’s second largest operator at 27.68 per cent.

Airtel clinched the third spot at 26.98 per cent while 9mobile remained the fourth operator at 6.54 per cent market share.

The NCC mobile Internet subscriber’s data showed that Globacom, which had 29.21 million Internet subscribers in January, gained the highest number of users – 1.75 million – to record a total of 30.95 million users in February.

MTN’s mobile Internet subscriber base increased to 56.49 million in February from 55.53 million in June, adding 960,814 new users to its network.

On the Visafone spectrum owned by MTN, 1,378 Internet users were lost, bringing the number down to 88,818 Internet users.

Airtel had 35.5 million Internet subscribers in January but recorded 36.17 million users by the end of February, thereby gaining 670,474 new users.

On the other hand, the data showed that 9mobile’s Internet subscribers declined from 8.04 million in January to 7.94 million in February, losing 96,220 mobile Internet users in one month.

Meanwhile, due to the need to work and learn remotely using technology devices, the demand for tablets, laptops, mobile phones and other digital devices has soared at Lagos Computer Village market.

As the Federal Government announced the gradual easing of the four-week-long lockdown in Abuja, Lagos and Ogun states, it was gathered that customers whose digital devices were damaged during the lockdown stormed the market. It was learnt on Wednesday that when the market reopened for sales, many customers thronged the market to replace and buy new technology devices and accessories.

This trend aligned with the prediction made by analysts at International Data Corporation that the tablet and PC shipments would see a nearly 100 per cent year-on- year growth in February 2020 as educational tablets demand figures were rising.

The Public Relations Officer, Computer and Allied Products Dealers Association of Nigeria, Ademola Olaifa, said due to the high demand and limited stock, vendors had increased the prices of their products.

According to him, some orders placed in January and February for digital devices from Asia have not arrived till now.

Olaifa said, “The market has been so good since Monday that we cannot meet the demand for some of our products.

“Our products from Asia are trickling in but not like what we experience before because the airport is not operational except for essential goods and our commodity does not fall in that category.”