Ethio Telecom Records Historic Shift as Data Revenue Overtakes Voice
Ethio Telecom has reported that data revenue has overtaken voice for the first time, marking a historic inflection point in Ethiopia's digital economy trajectory. The shift signals accelerating data consumption in a market that is also undergoing sweeping changes to its crypto regulatory framework.
Ethio Telecom: a century-old habit just broke
Voice was Ethio Telecom's biggest earner for over a hundred years. Data just overtook it — 31% of revenue against voice's 23.5%.
That crossover matters beyond the numbers. Ethiopia has 90 million customers but was, until very recently, one of Africa's most closed telecoms markets. The fact that data appetite is growing this fast inside a single-operator system — before meaningful competition has even landed — tells you something real about pent-up demand.
When Safaricom eventually competes at scale, this market isn't starting from zero.
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- Ethio Telecom Profit Jumps as Data Revenue Overtakes Voice, Marking Historic Digital Shift · itnewsafrica.com · T2