The GSMA report placed China Mobile as the world’s largest mobile operator based on connections and annual mobile revenue, with 726.31 million users - up 8 per cent from 2012 - and a haul of US$90.44 billion over 12 months.
Orange Business Services operates in 166 countries and over ten in Africa. The company supplies mobile solutions to more than one million professionals and IP services and networks to 3,700 multinational corporations.
HumanIPO reported last month Orange had partnered with South Africa’s Nashua Mobile as it looked to increase its momentum in the market.
Vodafone, which has operations in several African countries, took second place in the rankings with revenues of US$54.4 billion, though its growth in connections declined by eight per cent.
Vodafone Egypt is the largest mobile company in Egypt in terms of active subscribers, while Vodafone is also parent company to Kenya’s Safaricom, Vodacom in South Africa, Lesotho, DRC, Tanzania and Mozambique, and Vodafone Ghana.
Bharti Airtel, with operations in 17 countries across Africa, registered a 6 per cent growth in connections, with US$12.58 billion in revenues placing it ninth.
South Africa’s MTN Group fell two spots to thirteenth place, increasing connections by 13 per cent but dropping 10 per cent in revenue. MTN operates in over 17 African countries, including Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Republic of Congo, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Nigeria, Zambia and Uganda.
The GSMA’s data lists connections which are aggregated as the sum of each group’s subsidiaries - where a minimum of 50 per cent plus one share economic interest is held. Revenues are based on reported full-year data for 2012.
The “scorecard” gives equal weighting to connections and annual revenue in determining positions.