### **Overview** Bharti Hexacom Ltd operates under the globally recognized *Airtel* brand and serves as a leading telecommunications provider in two high-potential Indian circles: **Rajasthan** and the **Northeast region**, covering Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Tripura. It offers a converged portfolio of **consumer mobile, fixed-line, fiber broadband, and digital services**, with strategic focus on premiumization, digital innovation, and network expansion. The company is part of the broader Bharti Airtel ecosystem, benefiting from synergies in infrastructure, technology, and shared digital platforms. With strong revenue market shares—**43.1% in Rajasthan and 57.9% in the Northeast as of FY 2024–25**—Bharti Hexacom is positioned for sustained growth amid rising data consumption and digital inclusion efforts. --- ### **Network & Infrastructure** - **Coverage**: Expanded to **488 census towns** and **67,927 non-census towns and villages**, ensuring **96.5% population coverage** across its operating regions. - **Retail Presence**: Operates **58 retail outlets** and **24 small-format stores**, supported by a vast distribution network of **over 89,000 retail touchpoints**, including distributors using the 'Mitra' app for digital service delivery. - **Fiber Rollout**: Over **130,000 km of fiber laid** in the past three years; adding over **1.7 million fiber home passes per quarter**, accelerating toward a quarterly run rate of **2.5 million**. - **5G Deployment**: Delivers **Airtel 5G Plus** with widespread adoption—over **105 million 5G users nationally**, with millions active in Hexacom’s regions. Utilizes both **non-standalone (NSA)** and early **standalone (SA) 5G** for FWA and enterprise use cases. - **Spectrum**: Acquired **15 MHz additional spectrum** in sub-GHz and mid-band frequencies in FY2024–25 to enhance speed, coverage, and performance. --- ### **Consumer Services & Market Position** Bharti Hexacom provides integrated, high-speed connectivity solutions targeting high-value homes and digital-savvy consumers. #### **Mobile Services** - Offers prepaid, postpaid, roaming, and value-added services: **Airtel TV, video calling, HD streaming, gaming**. - Average monthly data usage: **28 GB per customer**, indicating high engagement and robust network utilization. - Strategy focuses on: - Migrating 2G to 4G/5G - Shifting prepaid to postpaid (targeting 80M credit-scored customers) - Monetizing data via contextual marketing - Expanding international roaming with **single-pack coverage across 184 countries** #### **Broadband & Converged Offerings** - **Fixed Wireless Access (FWA)** and **Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH)** services branded as **Airtel Xstream Fiber**, available in **over 629 cities**, delivering up to **1 Gbps speeds**. - FWA now available in **2,500 cities**, serving as a scalable alternative in remote and low-penetration areas. - Converged **Airtel Black** plans bundle mobile, broadband, linear TV, and OTT apps—**50% of new broadband customers opt for Black plans**. - Broadband net additions showing strong momentum: **53,000 new customers in one quarter** (Q1 2025), reaching **400,000 total subscribers**. - Revenue in **Homes & Office segment grew 29.6% YoY** (Q1 2025). --- ### **Digital Innovation & AI Integration** Bharti Hexacom leverages cutting-edge digital tools to transform customer experience, operational efficiency, and product innovation. #### **Next-Gen Platforms** - Built an in-house, **scalable data engine (Converged Data Engine - CDE)** processing **over 3,000 customer attributes**, enabling next-best-action recommendations. - Three-layer digital stack: 1. **Data Layer**: Single source of truth for all customer interactions. 2. **Workflow Platform**: Unified “buy, bill, pay, serve” functions. 3. **Unified Channels Layer**: Omnichannel delivery across digital and physical touchpoints. - Entire platform runs on **Airtel Cloud Infrastructure** managing: - **250 petabytes of data** - **10,000+ servers** - **14 core + 120 edge data centers** across India #### **AI & Automation** - Embedded AI in core operations, enabling: - Real-time network optimization via **Self-Optimizing Network (SON)** tools. - Personalized customer experiences at **ultra-local levels (100m x 100m grids)**. - Predictive maintenance and reduced operational costs. - Partnered with **Perplexity AI**, offering **free AI capabilities for one year**; attracted **5M+ users within days**, with rising engagement. #### **Anti-Spam & Security** - Launched **India’s first network-level AI-powered anti-spam solution**, detecting scams in real-time across SMS, OTT, and voice. - Identified **over 42 billion spam calls since inception**. - Blocks malicious websites and messages in **local languages**, processing **1 trillion data records daily**. - Alerts **252 million unique customers annually**. --- ### **Strategic Partnerships & Content Ecosystem** Bharti Hexacom enhances customer value through exclusive content and platform-level alliances. - **OTT Aggregation via Xstream**: - Partnerships with **Amazon Prime, Disney+ Hotstar, Netflix, ZEE5, Apple TV+, Apple Music, Glance**, offering access to **25+ OTT apps**. - **Google Partnership**: - Offers **6 months free 100GB Google One cloud storage** for postpaid and Wi-Fi customers. - Strategic intent to **capture Indian cloud market** projected at **$18B by 2027**. - **Bajaj Finance Collaboration**: - Co-develops **digital financial services platform**, combining Bajaj’s underwriting power with Airtel’s 200M+ user base. - Offers **EMI cards** across digital and physical channels. - **Zscaler Alliance**: Strengthens cybersecurity offering for B2B clients. --- ### **B2B Transformation & Growth Engines** Bharti Hexacom is retooling its B2B business beyond traditional connectivity toward high-growth, high-margin digital services. #### **B2B Portfolio Segments** | Segment | Status & Growth | |--------|----------------| | **Connectivity** | Core, high-margin; growth slowing to 4–5% | | **IoT** | Market leader (~50M customers, 60% share), rapidly growing | | **Cloud** | Proprietary Telco-Grade Cloud launching; high-margin SaaS model | | **Cybersecurity** | Partner-driven, low capex; doubling year-on-year | | **CPaaS & SD-WAN** | Emerging, scalable with minimal capital | | **Wholesale (Voice/Messaging)** | Exiting due to low margins and OTT disruption | #### **B2B Growth Initiatives** - Investing in **low-latency fiber backbone** using **OPGW (Optical Ground Wire)** and expanding **submarine cable capacity** from **45 Tbps to 180 Tbps**. - Developing **future-ready infrastructure**: advanced data centers, cloud, and AI-driven managed services. - Launching comprehensive **cloud solutions** for regulated sectors (e.g., banking) requiring **data sovereignty and compliance**. - Scaling **Airtel Cloud**, now the **largest in-country cloud instance in India**, targeting enterprise workloads. - Expanding **account management capabilities** with AI tools, virtual industry teams, and digital enablement. --- ### **Financials & Capital Strategy** - **Revenue Diversification** (Group Level): - **India Mobile**: 55% - **Africa**: 24% - **India Non-Mobile (Homes, B2B)**: 13% - **Indus Towers**: 8% - **Capex Outlook**: - Focus shifting from large-scale radio investments to **growth in Cloud, IoT, and fiber expansion**. - Capex as % of revenue declining due to prior network build-out. - **Spectrum Obligations**: No renewal needed until **FY 2029–30**, supporting financial flexibility. - **Deleveraging Progress**: Net debt/EBITDA improved to **2.2x in FY2024**, from 2.8x in FY2023. --- ### **Sustainability & Operational Excellence** - Reduced **network operating expenses by ₹2,200 crores (~$265M)** in FY25 through automation and “war on waste” initiatives. - Upgraded to **flapless networks** for B2B customers to ensure ultra-low latency and reliability. - Leveraging **AI for power optimization**, reducing energy consumption in network operations.