After the cold winter, we are welcoming the spring: the operating data of the three major operators rose collectively in March

With the orderly resumption of production and work, people's lives are gradually getting back on track, and the three major operators have begun to open their doors to welcome customers. Judging from the operating data for March released by the operators a few days ago, the backlog of potential users in the first two months has finally been released, and the number of users of the main businesses of China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom has increased, which also draws a successful end to the first quarter.

Mobile/4G users increased rapidly, and fixed-line users grew steadily

According to data released recently, in March, the three major operators saw growth in mobile, 4G, broadband and 5G businesses, reversing the downward trend of the previous two months.

Data shows that China Mobile's mobile users increased by 4.134 million in March, reaching a total of 946.295 million. The number of 4G users increased by 6.583 million, reaching a total of 751.953 million; the number of wired broadband users increased by 2.537 million, reaching a total of 191.138 million.

China Telecom's mobile user base increased by 6.15 million in March, bringing the total number of mobile users to 336.55 million; the net increase in wired broadband users was 440,000, bringing the total number of wired broadband users to 152.32 million.

China Telecom pointed out that in order to cooperate with the company's mobile business development strategy and further improve the conciseness of disclosed information, after the company launches 5G services, it will only disclose the number of 5G package users and mobile users, and will no longer disclose 4G user data.

China Unicom's mobile subscription users in March finally bid farewell to the sluggish mode of "five consecutive declines" and increased by 321,000 users, reaching a total of 311 million users; the number of 4G users increased by 2.109 million users in the month, reaching a total of 255 million users. In terms of fixed-line business, the number of fixed-line broadband users increased by 544,000 users in March, reaching a total of 84.831 million users.

It is clear from the data that the main operating businesses of the three major operators have improved significantly compared with the previous two months. Among them, China Telecom led the way with a net increase of 6.15 million mobile users, while the figure for the previous month was -5.6 million. China Mobile also achieved a big turnaround, with a net increase of 4.134 million mobile users in March, while the net decrease was 7.254 million in the previous month.

The three major operators also performed well in 4G business. Except for China Telecom which no longer announced 4G data, data disclosed by China Mobile showed that the number of 4G users increased by 6.583 million. China Unicom also achieved growth, with a net increase of 2.109 million users.

At the same time, the scale of fixed broadband access users of the three operators showed a steady growth trend. In February, except for China Telecom, which showed a negative growth (-81), the other two operators all achieved a slight growth. This trend continued in March, with the number of users of the three operators all increasing. Not surprisingly, China Mobile still maintained its lead, with a net increase of 2.537 million, far exceeding the other two operators. The total number of users is gradually moving towards the 200 million mark.

5G service ramp-up package users exceed 50 million for the first time

Among the disclosed data, the most concerned is the performance of the three major operators in 5G business.

The operators lived up to expectations. In March, China Mobile's 5G customer base increased by 16.324 million, reaching a total of 31.723 million. China Telecom's 5G package users increased by 5.88 million, reaching a total of 16.61 million. China Unicom still did not announce the number of 5G users.

Although China Unicom has not yet announced the number of 5G users, it is estimated that it should be between millions and tens of millions. At a press conference held by the State Council Information Office yesterday, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology revealed that as of the end of March, the total number of 5G package users of the three major operators had exceeded 50 million. At the same time, there are already more than 20 million 5G terminals that are actually connected to the 5G network using 5G devices.

The driving force behind the 5G business of operators is multifaceted, and the popularization of terminals is the most important. It is reported that as of April 22, 2020, 96 5G mobile phone terminals have obtained network access licenses. From January to March 2020, the domestic shipment of 5G mobile phones has reached 14.06 million units. At the same time, the price of 5G mobile phones has also dropped rapidly, and 5G mobile phones with a sales price of more than 2,000 yuan have begun to appear on the market. Commercial 5G professional modules, communication modules, modules for industrial production and other equipment have been launched, which can support applications in multiple industries such as 5G 8K TVs, 5K industrial production lines, and intelligent transportation.

In terms of 5G base stations, as of the end of March, 198,000 5G base stations have been built across the country. According to the plans of the three major operators, it is expected that by the end of the year, more than 550,000 5G base stations will be put into operation nationwide, achieving continuous outdoor coverage in prefecture-level cities, focused coverage in county towns and townships, and indoor coverage in key scenarios.

In terms of tariffs, on October 31 last year, the three major domestic operators announced the launch of 5G packages, with prices ranging from 128 yuan/month to 599 yuan/month. Users can freely and flexibly choose package levels.