The figure includes customers using fixed-line and DSL, mobile and DTH (direct-to-home) services, and the last 100 million customers were reportedly added in the last two years.
Airtel began operations in 1995, reaching the 100 million customer mark in 2009 and the 200 million mark in 2012. Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO for India and South Asia at Bharti Airtel said that the achievement underlines the strength of Airtel’s operations.
“Today, telecoms is at the cusp of transformation, which, going forward will be driven as much by the force of technology as by the changing demographics in emerging markets across Asia and Africa,” Vittal said.
“Accelerated data consumption by the youth is going to be the underlying story. I am confident that Airtel will continue to be at the forefront of this future growth story and continue to delight customers by adding value to their lives,” he added.
Airtel is the fourth-largest mobile service provider in the world, and has been focussing heavily on developing and upgrading its networks across Asia and Africa.
In March, the company completed an upgrade on its i2i submarine network in partnership with Ciena, and later in April, secured 3G and 4G licences for its subsidiary in Chad, central Africa.
