Reliance Jio on Friday posted an about 24 per cent increase in standalone profit after tax to Rs 4,173 crore for the quarter ended March 2022.

The company had registered a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 3,360 crore in the same period a year ago, the company said in a filing, according to a PTI report from New Delhi.

The standalone revenue from operations increased by over 20 per cent to Rs 20,901 crore, from Rs 17,358 crore in the March 2021 quarter.

For the financial year ended March 31, 2022, Reliance Jio’s consolidated PAT increased by about 23 per cent to Rs 14,854 crore, compared to Rs 12,071 crore in FY21.

The annual revenue from operations grew by about 10.3 per cent to Rs 77,356 crore in 2021-22, from Rs 70,127 crore a year ago

Commenting on the results, Mukesh D. Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director, Reliance Industries Limited, in a statement said: “Despite the ongoing challenges of the pandemic and heightened geo-political uncertainties, Reliance has delivered a robust performance in FY2021-22.”

He added: “JioFiber is now the largest broadband provider in India within two years of launch.”

Meanwhile, while announcing the Q4 and full year (ending March 31, 2022) earnings for Reliance Industries, the company said Jio Infocomm Ltd., India’s largest 4G and mobile broadband digital service provider, will land the next generation multi-terabit India-Asia-Xpress (IAX) undersea cable system in Hulhumale, Maldives in collaboration with Ocean Connect Maldives, a legal entity 100 percent owned by the Government of Maldives. The high capacity and high-speed IAX system will connect Hulhumale directly with world’s major internet hubs in India and Singapore.

In the connectivity business, gross subscriber addition continued to remain strong with total gross additions of 35.5 million in Q4 FY22 with sustained traction in mobility and FTTH businesses.

SIM consolidation post the December 2021 tariff hike led to a net reduction of 10.9 million in customer base in 4Q FY22, but ARPU improved to Rs. 167.6 led by tariff hike, better subscriber mix and ramp-up of FTTH services.

During 4Q FY22, average data and voice consumption per user per month increased to 19.7 GB and 968 minutes, respectively. Jio consumers have over five hours of average daily engagement on the set-top-box, the company said. Jio Platforms Limited (JPL), a subsidiary of the company, and SES, a leading global satellite-based content connectivity solutions provider, has announced the formation of a Joint Venture, Jio Space Technology Limited, to deliver the next generation scalable and affordable broadband services in India leveraging satellite technology.

JPL and SES will own 51 percent and 49 percent equity stake in the joint venture, respectively. The joint venture will use multi-orbit space networks that is a combination of Geostationary and Medium Earth Orbit satellite constellations capable of delivering multi-gigabit links and capacity to enterprises, mobile backhaul and retail customers across the length and breadth of India and neighbouring regions, Reliance said in an earnings  press release.

JPL will also invest $ 200 million in Glance, a leading AI-driven lock-screen platform. This investment will expedite Glance’s vision of bringing the Internet to smartphone lock screens globally. Concurrent with the proposed investment, Glance has also entered into a business partnership arrangement with Reliance Retail Ventures Limited, providing for Glance’s ‘lock screen platform’ to be integrated into the JioPhone Next smartphones to transform the internet experience for millions of Jio users.

During the financial year, JPL announced an investment of $ 15 million in Two Platforms Inc. (TWO), a Silicon Valley based deep tech start up, for a 25 percent equity stake on a fully diluted basis. TWO is an Artificial Reality company with focus on building interactive and immersive AI experiences. TWO will work collaboratively with Jio to fast-track the adoption of new technologies and build disruptive technologies such as AI, metaverse, and mixed realities.

Viacom18 (a step-down subsidiary) and Reliance recently had announced a strategic partnership with Bodhi Tree Systems (promoted by James Murdoch and media executive Uday Shankar) to transform Viacom18 into one of the largest TV and digital streaming companies in India. Bodhi Tree Systems will invest ₹ 13,500 crore and Reliance Projects & Property Management Services Limited, , a wholly-owned subsidiary of the RIL, will invest ₹ 1,645 crore in Viacom18.