Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio that shook the country's mobile services market, has posted a £27.1 million loss in the second quarter of fiscal 2018. However, its parent company RIL saw a 12.5 per cent rise in profit to Rs 8109 Crore. This is the first time that Jio announced its quarterly earnings since it started commercial operations in September last year.
The mobile service provided offered its services for free in the first seven months of its operations, and only began charging customers from April. The wholly owned subsidiary of RIL reported expenses of Rs 6563 Crore. Ambani said that the “strong financial results of Jio demonstrates its robust business model and the significant efficiencies it has built through its investment in 4G technology.” Jio has a subscriber base of 138.6 million as on September 30, of which 15.3 million users were added in Q2FY18. In the seven-month free offer period, the company managed to attract over 100 million subscribers. The fourth-largest mobile operator in terms of users, Jio said its average revenue per customer stood at Rs 156 a month.
RIL's Q2FY18 consolidated revenues, including that of Jio, increased 24 per cent to Rs 1 Lakh Crore. RIL's Q2FY18 operating profit rose 32 per cent to Rs 17,896 Crore. RIL derives 95 per cent of its profit from refining and petrochemicals businesses.
