Bangladesh’s internet subscriber base has begun to rebound in recent months, with July recording robust growth of about 24 lakh, driven mainly by mobile operators.
According to the latest statistics from the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), the country’s total internet subscribers rose by 1.78 percent in July, reaching 13.60 crore.
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This surge was overwhelmingly dominated by the mobile internet sector. Mobile subscriptions grew by 22.4 lakh to reach 12.15 crore, a 1.88 percent increase compared to June.
The rebound comes after a prolonged period of decline that began following the fall of the government last year.
The decline was driven solely by a drop in mobile internet users.
In June last year, the total number of internet subscribers peaked at 14.21 crore. Since then, mobile subscriptions have continued to fall sharply.
Between July last year and January this year, mobile internet subscribers dropped by 1.31 crore, falling from 12.91 crore to 11.60 crore.
Industry experts attribute this decline to several factors: a 50 percent hike in SIM tax, reduced subsidies on SIM sales by operators, and mounting economic pressures on consumers.
With the government raising the SIM tax to Tk 300 at the start of the last fiscal year, smaller operators such as Banglalink and Robi significantly cut back on subsidies, making it harder to attract new users.
Previously, operators often sold SIM cards at heavy discounts or even distributed them free to expand their customer base.
However, the overall internet subscriber base started to recover gradually from January to March this year. From April to July, the recovery accelerated, with the total subscriber base increasing by 52 lakh during the four months.
Industry insiders say Grameenphone and Robi have been particularly active in efforts to retain and grow their user base.
Shahed Alam, Chief Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Officer, noted that rising data consumption contributed significantly to the recent growth in mobile subscribers.
Broadband connections also recorded gains. The number of broadband subscribers rose by 1.4 lakh in July, reaching 1.44 crore.
As per BTRC’s definition, an internet subscriber refers to any user who has accessed the internet at least once in the past 90 days.
The regulator updates ISP and PSTN subscriber data quarterly, based on market analysis, consultations, and reports from operators.
Year-on-year, mobile internet subscriptions decreased by 4.69 percent in July, while broadband subscriptions increased by 6.78 percent.
Overall, the country’s total internet subscriber base shrank by 4.35 percent year-on-year in July.