Telecel Zimbabwe one of Zimbabwe’s few mobile network operators reportedly lost 100,321 subscribers in the second quarter of 2020, Technomag reports.
This was contained in a Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (POTRAZ) report that attributed the loss of subscribers to the deteriorating economic conditions in the country. The report also blamed the decline on the effects of the coronavirus on the telecommunications industry.
Part of the POTRAZ report that talks about Telecel’s decline in subscribers said :
Covid-19 had a direct impact on the operations of both the formal and informal sector, thus negatively affecting real disposable incomes.
Telecel in the first quarter of 2020 the mobile service provider lost 85,199 subscribers due to limited base stations and power supply challenges hence subscriber attrition to competitor networks.
Active mobile telephone subscriptions declined by 6.7% to reach 12,798,298 as at 30 June 2020 from 13,724,522 recorded as at 31 March 2020.
During the same period, Econet recorded a -8.4% decline in subscribers while Netone recorded -0.5%.
Meanwhile, POTRAZ has argued that Zimbabwe needs more players in Zimbabwe’s Telecoms Industry even though reports a while ago unconfirmed reports that the government blocked other players like MTN to open shop in Zimbabwe circulated.
More: Technomag