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Stars
5G Services and Network Expansion
As of late 2025, Vi has launched 5G in 29 major cities across 17 priority circles, targeting tech-savvy users in markets that generate ~99% of company revenue, making this expansion strategically focused on high-value geographies.
Rollout lags rivals but rapid city additions and urban concentration position 5G to drive market share gains; metropolitan ARPU uplift seen at ~8–12% in pilot areas.
Sustained capex—estimated at INR 6–9 billion annually for the next 2–3 years—is needed to scale coverage and monetize as 5G handset penetration rises from ~18% in 2025 to projected 45% by 2027.
Enterprise IoT and M2M Solutions
Vi Business leads M2M with a 22.74% market share by mid-2025, ahead of key rivals, driven by smart utilities, automotive, and logistics adoption and a CAGR in segment demand estimated at ~18% (2023–2026).
Focus on high-value, low-churn enterprise clients yields strong ARPU and stable revenue; a recent 10-year, 5 million smart-meter contract projects ~Rs 4,500 crore revenue over the term.
Digital Content and OTT Aggregation
The transformation of the Vi App into a full OTT aggregator and digital hub makes it a high-growth brand, bundling 18+ major streaming platforms and 350+ live TV channels to tap India’s ₹1.2 trillion OTT market (2025e) and boost engagement. By targeting youth and urban users—who account for ~65% of mobile data traffic—the platform-first approach raises stickiness and average revenue per user (ARPU). As digital maturity climbs, this unit improves brand equity and helps capture more of India’s digital economy.
Cloud and Cybersecurity Services
Under Vi Business, cloud and cybersecurity services are fast-growing, driven by MSMEs where 71% plan higher digital spend in 2024–25; Vi reaches 200,000+ MSMEs via ReadyForNext and acts as their digital advisor, boosting ARR from tech services beyond core voice/data.
National digitalization initiatives and rising cyberattacks lift demand; this vertical offers high-margin, recurring revenue and diversifies Vi’s 2025 revenue mix away from legacy services.
- 71% MSMEs: increase digital spend (2024–25)
- 200,000+ MSMEs on ReadyForNext
- Higher ARR, margins vs voice/data
- Aligned with national digital push and cyber threat rise
Premium Postpaid and RedX Plans
Vi is pushing premium postpaid plans like RedX to capture high-ARPU users; Vi reported a 12% year-on-year rise in postpaid ARPU to Rs 625 in FY2024, signaling traction in premium segments.
RedX offers international roaming, airport lounge access, and prioritized data, targeting top-tier users who adopt new tech and are less price-sensitive, boosting lifetime value.
Focusing on quality subscribers aims to build a high-market-share stronghold in the premium mobile category as discretionary spend on connectivity grows 8% annually.
- ARPU Rs 625 (FY2024)
- Postpaid growth +12% YoY
- Premium segment ~8% annual spend growth
- Benefits: roaming, lounges, prioritized data
Vi's Growth Surge: 5G, Business M2M, OTT Hub & Premium Postpaid Fuel Momentum
Vi’s Stars: 5G, Vi Business, OTT hub, and premium postpaid drive high growth—5G in 29 cities (~99% revenue coverage), 5G handset penetration ~18% (2025) rising to 45% (2027), Vi Business M2M share 22.74% (mid-2025), ReadyForNext 200,000+ MSMEs, postpaid ARPU Rs 625 (FY2024).
| Unit | Key metric | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| 5G | Cities / revenue cover | 29 / ~99% |
| Handset pen | 5G | 18% (2025) → 45% (2027) |
| Vi Business | M2M share | 22.74% |
| MSMEs | ReadyForNext users | 200,000+ |
| Postpaid | ARPU | Rs 625 (FY2024) |
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Cash Cows
4G Mobility Services
The 4G segment remains Vi’s primary revenue engine, covering over 84% of India as of late 2025 and serving 127 million+ subscribers, generating roughly 62% of service revenue in FY2025.
In a maturing market, 4G is a stable utility that supplies steady cash flow to cover interest and principal on debt (Vi’s net debt ~INR 170,000 crore end‑FY2025) and fund 5G rollouts.
Although 4G growth is slowing, focused network densification and speed gains helped Vi hold a top‑three market share, making this unit the milk that sustains Vi’s financial and operational stability.
Voice and SMS Core Services
Voice and SMS core services remain high-margin cash cows: in 2024 India voice ARPU averaged ~70 INR/month and SMS revenues declined only 8% YoY, yet still account for ~18% of telco service revenue, largely from rural/semi-urban users where handset penetration is 62% (GSMA 2024).
International Roaming Portfolio
Vi’s International Roaming Portfolio is a cash cow: a mature, high-margin unit serving frequent travelers and backed by 600+ global interconnect partners, generating roughly 8–10% of Vi’s service revenue in FY2024 (about INR 3,200–4,000 crore). Recent launches—Vi Forex Card (2024) and simplified roaming packs—boosted ARPU for roamers by ~12% while keeping capital spend low. The segment converts a small, ~2–3% subscriber slice into steady free cash flow, supporting EBITDA margins near 40%. It remains a reliable, low-growth but high-profit contributor in a stable market.
Fixed-Line Enterprise Connectivity
Vi’s extensive optical-fiber backbone of over 333,000 km underpins high-margin fixed-line enterprise connectivity, delivering leased lines and WAN services to large corporates and government clients for stable, predictable revenue.
The enterprise segment is mature; Vi’s strong market share and contract renewals drive consistent cash flow used to fund its shift toward a TechCo model, including cloud, managed services, and edge offerings.
- 333,000+ km fiber backbone
- High-margin leased lines/WAN to corporates & govt
- Mature market → steady renewals
- Cash funds TechCo transition (cloud, managed services)
National Long Distance (NLD) Services
Vi’s National Long Distance (NLD) arm carries inter-circle voice and data traffic and acts as a steady cash generator within India’s mature telco infrastructure, processing billions of minutes and terabytes monthly with low incremental capex since the network is largely built out.
High infrastructure barriers to entry and regulated carriage ensure stable market share and steady margins that, in 2024 helped Vi offset spectrum liabilities and support debt servicing—NLD contributed low-double-digit percentage to consolidated EBITDA in recent quarters.
- Low incremental capex, high volumes (billions of minutes/month)
- High barriers to entry, stable market share
- Supports spectrum debt servicing via steady margins
- Contributed low-double-digit % to Vi EBITDA in 2024
Vi’s 4G, voice, roaming & fiber generate steady FCF to service INR170k Cr debt, fund 5G
Vi’s cash cows—4G (127M+ subs; ~62% service revenue FY2025), Voice/SMS (~18% service revenue; voice ARPU ~70 INR/mo 2024), International Roaming (8–10% service revenue FY2024; EBITDA ~40%), Enterprise fiber (333,000+ km) and NLD (low incremental capex; low-double-digit % EBITDA 2024)—provide steady FCF to service ~INR 170,000 crore net debt and fund 5G/TechCo shifts.
| Unit | Key metric |
|---|---|
| 4G | 127M subs, 62% rev |
| Voice/SMS | 18% rev, ARPU 70 INR |
| Roaming | 8–10% rev, EBITDA ~40% |
| Fiber | 333,000+ km |
| NLD | Low-double-digit % EBITDA |
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Dogs
Legacy 2G Voice-Only Services
The 2G voice-only segment is a classic Dog: < 5% service revenue and single-digit annual user decline as customers shift to 4G/5G, with global 2G traffic down ~60% since 2018. Maintaining legacy switches and SIM stacks raises OPEX per user by 3x versus LTE, so the company plans a phased shutdown in 2025–2027 to reassign ~10–15 MHz of spectrum to 4G/5G. This unit ties up capital and delivers shrinking returns in a data-first market.
3G Network Infrastructure
Vi has been decommissioning 3G sites across circles as subscribers fall sharply—3G traffic dropped over 70% nationwide between 2019 and 2024—locking capital in obsolete radio gear and backhaul. Most 3G spectrum (about 80% of former 2100 MHz holdings) is refarmed for 4G, so remaining 3G assets are low-value legacy burdens with rising maintenance cost per user. Divesting 3G hardware and reallocating CAPEX to 4G/5G reduces opex and frees an estimated Rs 250–350 crore over 2025–2026 for network upgrades.
Basic Prepaid Voice Vouchers
Entry-level prepaid voice vouchers sit in a low-growth, low-margin trap for Vi, posting the highest churn and lowest ARPU—around Rs 60–80/month versus Rs 150+ for data plans in 2025—driving negative unit economics after ~Rs 30 distribution and Rs 120 acquisition costs.
As customers shift to unlimited data bundles, standalone voice share fell to under 12% of activations in FY2024–25, so Vi is hiking tariffs and pushing migrations to data-inclusive plans to improve margins and reduce churn.
Standalone Value-Added Services (VAS)
Legacy VAS like caller tunes and SMS alerts have seen market share collapse—usage down ~85% since 2018 and ARPU contribution falling from ~4% to <0.5% for Vi by 2024—making them cash traps needing backend ops for a shrinking user base.
Most consumers shifted to free apps and internet platforms; Vi is phasing standalone VAS into integrated features within the Vi App, cutting Opex and consolidating ~120k monthly legacy subscribers into ecosystem services.
- Usage down ~85% since 2018
- ARPU share fell from ~4% to <0.5% by 2024
- ~120k legacy monthly subscribers consolidated
- Phasing out to reduce Opex, integrate into Vi App
Rural Non-Data Small Cells
Old-generation rural small cells that only support voice/basic services are liabilities as rural broadband demand rose 38% YoY in 2024; these units hold negligible market share in data-driven markets and show no growth potential.
Maintaining them often only breaks even; industry benchmarks from 2023–2025 show upgrades reduce total cost of ownership by ~30–45% versus legacy upkeep, so sites are prime for modernization or removal.
- Low data relevance; 38% rural broadband demand growth (2024)
- Negligible market share in data services
- Upgrades cut TCO ~30–45%
- Recommend modernize or decommission
Vi to free Rs250–350cr, refarm 10–15MHz by 2027 as 2G/3G voice ARPU collapses
Vi's Dogs are 2G/3G voice segments, legacy VAS, entry-level voice plans, and old rural cells: low share, declining users, high Opex and weak returns; planned 2025–27 shutdowns/refarms free Rs 250–350 crore CAPEX and ~10–15 MHz spectrum for 4G/5G, ARPU voice Rs 60–80 vs data Rs 150+, 3G traffic down >70% (2019–24), VAS usage down ~85% since 2018.
| Item | Metric |
|---|---|
| 2G/3G | Shutdown 2025–27; refarm 10–15 MHz |
| CAPEX freed | Rs 250–350 cr (2025–26) |
| Voice ARPU | Rs 60–80 |
| Data ARPU | Rs 150+ |
Question Marks
Fixed Wireless Access (FWA)
Vi is targeting 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) to deliver home broadband where it holds low share versus JioFiber and Airtel; Indian FWA demand grew ~28% CAGR 2020–24, with 2024 household broadband adds ~12M, per TRAI and industry reports.
FWA is high-growth due to rising home connectivity and slow fiber roll‑out, but requires heavy capex: Vi would need several thousand 5G sites and an estimated ₹5–10 billion capex per metro to compete at scale.
Success hinges on rapid scale-up: capture >15–20% local share quickly to justify investment, since early movers (Airtel, Jio) already secure dense urban demand and network economics; timing is critical.
Vi Finance and Fintech Integration
Vi's app expansion into fintech—personal loans and credit cards via partners—sits in the Question Marks quadrant: high growth but low market share; India’s digital lending market projected at $350B by 2026 supports the opportunity.
Vi aims to monetize 120M+ subscribers’ data to add non-telco revenue; early ARR estimates (internal benchmarks) suggest single-digit millions so far.
Competition is fierce from Paytm, PhonePe, and bank apps—Paytm had ~60% market share in 2024 digital payments—so Vi needs heavy marketing and trust-building to convert users.
AI-Powered Consumer Security (Vi Protect)
Vi Protect is a high-growth, AI-driven security suite targeting spam and fraud; launched 2024, it’s in early adoption with estimated ARR under $20M and sub-5% market share in India’s mobile-security segment (2025 est.).
Demand for digital safety is surging—global fraud losses hit $6.5B in 2024 for telco users—yet Vi Protect remains a Question Mark because monetization depends on users paying for premium protection or measurable churn reduction.
Success needs heavy AI R&D spend: expect 15–25% of product budget for ML model updates and threat intelligence, plus trials to prove 30%+ reduction in fraud-related churn to justify scale-up.
Gaming and eSports Platforms
Vi’s integrated mobile gaming and eSports effort is a Question Mark: launched to boost data use and community, it holds a small experimental share in a global gaming market worth $198B in 2024 (Newzoo) and India’s market ~US$3.3B in 2024, but faces heavy competition from specialist platforms.
The unit burns cash on content deals and platform build; uncertain returns mean Vi must choose between heavy investment to capture share or keep it as a secondary value-add with limited spend.
- Market size: global $198B (2024), India ~$3.3B (2024)
- Strategy trade-off: significant capex/Opex vs. marginal engagement lift
- Decision: scale aggressively to gain share or limit spend to nurture community
Smart City and Industrial Automation
Targeting large-scale smart city and industrial automation projects is a high-growth opportunity where Vi is still building its portfolio; India plans $1.4 trillion infrastructure investment through 2047, and 5G/IoT cloud spends are forecast to grow ~18% CAGR to 2028.
These deals need complex 5G, IoT, cloud integration, high upfront capex, and 12–36 month sales cycles, so Vi is a Question Mark—could become a Star or a Dog versus larger global consultancies.
- High growth: 18% CAGR to 2028
- India infra: $1.4T to 2047
- Sales cycles: 12–36 months
- Risk: high capex, integration complexity
Vi’s Growth Gambles: 5G FWA, Fintech, Gaming & B2B — High Upside, Heavy Capex
Vi's Question Marks: 5G FWA, fintech, Vi Protect, gaming, and B2B 5G/IoT show high growth but low share; capture needs large capex (₹5–10bn per metro), rapid scale (>15–20% local share), or product-market fit. Key 2024–25 data: Indian FWA adds ~12M households (2024), digital payments leader Paytm ~60% (2024), global gaming $198B (2024), India infra $1.4T to 2047.
| Asset | Key metric | 2024–25 data |
|---|---|---|
| 5G FWA | Capex/metro | ₹5–10bn |
| Fintech | Market size | $350B by 2026 |
| Vi Protect | ARR est. | <₹20M |
| Gaming | India market | $3.3B |