What does ARPU mean?
ARPU stands for average revenue per user. It is the revenue a company earns from an average customer, usually per month.
Telecom, broadband and TV companies report it every quarter. So do some app and subscription businesses.
How is ARPU worked out?
Bharti Airtel's quarterly report gives the method. Total revenue for the period is divided by the average number of customers, then by the number of months.[S1]
Why do companies' ARPU figures differ in meaning?
Each company chooses which revenue and which customers to count. Vodafone Idea reports two figures: a blended ARPU and a customer ARPU that leaves out machine-to-machine connections.[S2]
Its blended figure uses service revenue and excludes some items, such as device sales.[S2] So read each company's glossary before putting two ARPUs side by side.
What moves ARPU?
Tariff changes move it directly. So does the customer mix, such as more postpaid users or bigger data plans.
Adding many low-paying customers can pull ARPU down even while total revenue grows.
Where do you see it on Cityfort?
ARPU is revenue seen per customer. The block below shows total yearly revenue for telecom companies on Cityfort. ARPU uses only the revenue of the business it covers, such as mobile.