Reliance Infocomm has claimed a subscriber base of 8,61,320 wireless limited mobile customers as on March 25, 2003, having started taking bookings from February 6.

The company has also stated that it has invested Rs 7,389 crore (Rs 73.89 billion) till December 31, 2002 to set up its all-India fixed-line and limited mobility network.

The figures are based on an affidavit filed by the Association Of Basic Telecom Operators to the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal on March 27, 2003.

The affidavit is part of the current dispute between cellular service operators and fixed-line/limited mobility service operators.

The affidavit marks the first time that information on the subscriber bases and investment figures of the new fixed-line/limited mobility service operators have been made public. ABTO's affidavit says these figures have been supplied by their members.

The affidavit also shows that Tata Teleservices Ltd has spent Rs 2,359.42 crore (Rs 23.59 billion) on its fixed-line and limited mobility network in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Gujarat and Karnataka as on December 31, 2002.

The combined subscriber base in these five circles as on February 28, 2003, stands at 3,16,358, of which just 93,924 are fixed phones lines. Another 87,982 are fixed wireless terminal phones. The remaining are wireless limited mobile subscribers.

But the company's total investment is much larger at Rs 5194.42 crore (Rs 51.94 billion) because of its recent acquisition of the Maharashtra basic service operations from Hughes Telecom.

The newly christened Tata Teleservices Maharashtra Ltd has declared an investment of Rs 2,835 crore (Rs 28.35 billion) and has claimed a subscriber base of 218,864 out of which 1,67,774 subscribers are on fixed line phones while the rest use fixed wireless terminal phones. Tata Teleservices has not started wireless limited mobile services in Maharashtra yet.

The six basic service companies — Tata Teleservices (as well as Tata Teleservices Maharashtra Ltd ), Shyam Telelink, HFCL Infotel and Reliance Infocomm (and Reliance Telecom in Gujarat) — have together invested Rs 14,960 crore (Rs 149.60 billion) as on December 31, 2002.

Their combined subscriber base as on February 2003  (except for the Reliance companies whose figures are up to March 25) is 16,84,535 out of which only 3,56,197 subscribers use fixed lines.

The revenue earnings of these companies between April 1, 2002 to December 31, 2002 is Rs 560.66 crore (Rs 5.60 billion). Of this, the two Tata companies accounted for more than Rs 430 crore (Rs 4.3 billion). Reliance Infocomm has not shown its turnover figures as it has just started its services.

But the revenues earned in the nine months last year are better than what the six companies earned in 2001-2002, which was only Rs 488.94 crore (Rs 4.88 billion).

A Reliance Infocomm spokesperson declined to comment on the issue and the figures. The Tata Teleservices spokesperson said that their executives were unavailable for comment.