Idea Cellular Q4 net up 4.5 per cent at Rs 267 cr

Kumar Manglam Birla-led telecom firm Idea Cellular registered a 4.5 per cent jump in its consolidated net profit at Rs 267 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2010, as against Rs 255 crore in the same period last year.

Kumar Manglam Birla-led telecom firm Idea Cellular registered a 4.5 per cent jump in its consolidated net profit at Rs 267 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2010, as against Rs 255 crore in the same period last year.

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Total revenueof the Aditya Birla group company rose to Rs 3,348 crore for the quarter from Rs 2,943 crore in the same period of the previous fiscal.

“Price war saw SIM cards being subscribed at throwaway prices. It does diminish margins. The need for telephony is high and I see this fading away in the next two years,” said Sanjeev Aga, managing director, Idea Cellular.

The number of operators jumped during the last 15 months, as licences obtained during 2007 converted into live operations. The sector overcapacity and hyper competition caused year-on-year decline of 23 per cent in the average realised rate for Idea.

“Circles in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Mumbai gave us a lot of traction and are close to break even,” said Aga.

The company’s share rose 3.6 per cent to Rs 63 on BSE.