China telecom revenue growth slows as data use surges, earnings lag

by ZHOU Mo

China's telecommunications revenue growth slowed sharply in 2025, even as data usage continued to surge, highlighting mounting pressure on operators to monetize traffic growth.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said total telecom service revenue rose 0.7% to 1.75 trillion yuan, barely above the previous year. By contrast, total telecom service volume grew 9.1% on a constant-price basis, widening the gap between usage and income.

The divergence was most evident in mobile data services. Mobile internet traffic rose 17.3% last year, while average monthly data usage per user climbed to 20.74 GB. Yet revenue from mobile data services fell 3.1%, marking the third consecutive annual decline.

Fixed broadband was the only major traditional business to post solid growth. Revenue rose 5.9% to 289.6 billion yuan, supported by rising uptake of high-speed connections, including gigabit broadband. Voice and messaging services continued to lose ground, as usage shifted toward internet-based platforms.

Newer businesses such as cloud computing, big data and the internet of things generated 450.8 billion yuan in revenue, up 4.7%, accounting for just over a quarter of total telecom income. Growth in these segments, however, has slowed sharply from earlier years.

User growth showed signs of easing. China had nearly 2.0 billion telephone users by the end of 2025, while net additions to fixed broadband subscriptions slowed, suggesting the market is approaching saturation.

Despite weak revenue growth, investment in digital infrastructure remained strong. China expanded its 5G network and computing capacity last year, as authorities continued to priorities next-generation connectivity under long-term economic planning goals.

For telecom operators, the challenge remains converting fast-rising data traffic and computing demand into sustainable revenue growth, as traditional pricing models come under strain.