World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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The new 'Scoreboard' tracks the top 20 global operator groups by connections based on majority-owned assets in Q2 2012. Minority holdings (less than 50 percent plus one share) are excluded from the analysis.
Three Indian companies are listed among the world's top 20 mobile operators.
Take a look at the world's largest mobile operators...
1. China Mobile (China)
China Mobile continued its lead as the world's largest operator group, growing connections by 11 per cent year-on-year to 683.1 million.
Two of its domestic rivals moved up the ranking compared to a year ago - and all three now feature in the top ten for the first time.
Connections: 683.08 million
YoY Growth, connections: 11%
Mobile Revenue: $22.05 bn
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Image: A man talks on his mobile phone at the entrance of a China Mobile booth in Beijing.
Photographs: Soo Hoo Zheyang/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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2. Vodafone Group (United Kingdom)
Connections: 386.88 million
YoY Growth, connections: 5%
Mobile Revenue: $13.92 bn
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Image: An employee talks on mobile phone inside a Vodafone store in Agartala.
Photographs: Jayanta Dey/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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America Movil Group (United States)
Connections: 251.83 million
YoY Growth, connections: 7%
Mobile Revenue: $7.98 bn
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Image: The logo of America Movil is seen on the wall of the reception area in the company's new corporate offices in Mexico City.
Photographs: Henry Romero/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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4. Bharti Airtel Group (India)
Connections: 250.04 million
YoY Growth, connections: 13%
Mobile Revenue: $3.04 bn
Bharti Airtel was the only other member of the top ten to move up the ranking, recording a 13 percent year-on-year rise in connections and leapfrogging Telefonica to become the world's fourth-largest operator group in Q2.
However, Bharti's US$3.04 billion in mobile revenue in Q2 2012 is significantly lower than the four other operators in the top five, reflecting Bharti's presence in the ultra low-cost, low-margin Indian and African markets, says Wireless Intelligence.
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Image: A man touches a screen on a Bharti Airtel advertisement billboard during the launch ceremony for 4G services in Kolkata.
Photographs: Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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Telefonica Group (Spain)
Connections: 243.51 million
YoY Growth, connections: 7%
Mobile Revenue: $11.40 bn
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Image: A man checks his phone outside Telefonica headquarters in Madrid.
Photographs: Susana Vera/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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China Unicom (China)
Connections: 219.25 million
YoY Growth, connections: 21%
Mobile Revenue: $4.95 bn
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Image: Security guards ride past a China Unicom office in Beijing.
Photographs: Christina Hu/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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VimpelCom Group (Russia)
(includes Orascom group)
Connections: 205.05 million
YoY Growth, connections: 7%
Mobile Revenue: $4.58 bn
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Image: A man speaks on the phone near an office of Beeline, the brand owned by mobile phone operator Vimpelcom, in Moscow.
Photographs: Maxim Shemetov/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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Reliance Communications (India)
Connections: 154.60 million
YoY Growth, connections: 8%
Mobile Revenue: $0.48 bn
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Image: A man talks on a mobile phone in front of an advertisement for Reliance Communications in Mathura.
Photographs: K.K. Arora/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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Telenor Group (Norway)
Connections: 152.74 million
YoY Growth, connections: 24%
Mobile Revenue: $2.55 bn
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Image: A visitor rests under a Telenor Group sign at the GSMA Mobile World Conference in Barcelona.
Photographs: Gustau Nacarino/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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China Telecom (China)
Connections: 144.18 million
YoY Growth, connections: 33%
Mobile Revenue: $3.37 bn
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Image: Wang Xiaochu,Chairman and CEO, China Telecom.
Photographs: Courtesy, China Telecom.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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MTN Group (South Africa)
Connections: 136.59 million
YoY Growth, connections: 14%
Mobile Revenue: $3.85 bn
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Image: A man speaks on a mobile phone as he walks past a MTN shop at a shopping mall south of Johannesburg.
Photographs: Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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France Telecom Group (France)
Connections: 133.38 million
YoY Growth, connections: 57%
Mobile Revenue: $7.18 bn
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Image: A woman makes a phone call in a France Telecom phone box in Nice, southern France.
Photographs: Eric Gaillard/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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Telkomsel Gr (Indonesia)
Connections: 117.24 million
YoY Growth, connections: 15%
Mobile Revenue: $1.43 bn
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Image: An employee of PT Telekomunikasi Satelit (Telkomsel) holds a customer's mobile phone at a service outlet in Jakarta.
Photographs: Beawiharta/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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Idea Cellular (India)
Connections: 117.16 million
YoY Growth, connections: 15%
Mobile Revenue: $1 bn
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Photographs: Courtesy, Idea Cellular.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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Sistema Group (Russia)
(Includes MTS Group)
Connections: 114.51 million
YoY Growth, connections: 3%
Mobile Revenue: $2.54 bn
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Photographs: Courtesy, Sistema Group.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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Verizon Wireless
Connections: 111.37 million
YoY Growth, connections: 5%
Mobile Revenue: $15.78 bn
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Image: Chris Gates, assistant manager at a Verizon Wireless store, holds the new Verizon iPhones at his store in Boca Raton, Florida.
Photographs: Joe Skipper/Reuters.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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Deutsche Telekom Group (Germany)
Connections: 107.86 million
YoY Growth, connections: 2%
Mobile Revenue: $8.38 bn
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Image: Deutsche Telekom Group.
World's largest mobile operators, Bharti Airtel is No.4
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AT&T (United States)
Connections: 105.21 million
YoY Growth, connections: 7%
Mobile Revenue: $14.77 bn
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Image: AT&T phone.
Photographs: Courtesy, AT&T.
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