Vodafone's Apr-Jun revenue jump 13% on data biz growth

British telecom major Vodafone, which is facing tax dispute of Rs 11,217 crore in India, today said revenue in the country grew by over 13 per cent to Rs 9,933.42 crore (GBP 1,091 million) during first quarter ended
June 30.

"In India service revenue was up over 13 per cent driven by a more stable pricing environment, an improved process of customer verification and continued strong data revenue growth," Vodafone said in a statement. The India business pushed Vodafone's revenue growth in Asia, Middle East and Asia Pacific (AMAP) region.

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"Growth was driven by a strong increase in India and robust performances in Vodacom, Egypt, Ghana and Qatar, partially offset by service revenue declines in Australia and New Zealand." In India, the company saw increase in mobile internet usage by 29 per cent compared to its previous quarter due to increased number of data (internet) customers and increased usage per customer, particularly amongst 3G customers. "At 30 June 2013, active data customers totalled 41.2 million, including approximately 3.7 million 3G subscribers," Vodafone said.

The group' service revenue including joint ventures declined by 2.5 per cent to Rs 92,281.51 crore (GBP 10,155 million) during the reported quarter from Rs 90,187.74 crore (GBP 9,904 million).  The company saw increase of 12.6 per cent in India's average revenue per user (ARPU) at Rs 196 in the reported quarter from Rs 174 during the same period last year.

The company's AMAP (Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific) revenues grew by 2.5 per cent to Rs 27,503 crore from Rs 26,828.6 crore.