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Internet competition brings choices
Increasing competition among internet service providers has given customers more choice in terms of technology, service quality and price, according to the Ministry of Information and Communications.
With one of the world's highest internet growth rates, Vietnam is attractive to investors. Internet users in Vietnam currently represent 23.5 per cent of the country's population and that figure is expected to rise to 35 per cent in 2010.
Quality of service, particularly access speed, is now more important than the service price, the ministry said.
Vietnam currently has nine internet service providers. However, just three: the Viet Nam Post and Telecoms Group (VNPT), the Vietnamese military-run telecom firm Viettel and the FPT telecom joint stock company hold up to 87 per cent of the market.
Each of the firms is building on its own special strengths to boost market share.
VNPT is striving to expand service range. Meanwhile, FPT is taking advantage of its technological strength to offer more value-added services, while Viettel, which has established itself as a low-cost service provider, is to continue with its price-cutting strategy.
A recent survey by PC World on popular IT- telecom products in 2008 showed that the broad-band internet service provided by VNPT was rated the highest by customers, followed by FPT and Viettel.
The remaining six providers - EVN, SPT, Netnam, OCI, Tiennet and HPT - with only 13 per cent of the market have seen their customer bases shrink in recent years due to their lack of NET infrastructure.
Officials from the Ministry of Information and Communications said the open-door policy on foreign investment in IT businesses without NET infrastructure - in line with Vietnam's WTO commitments - would benefit these businesses.
Under the policy, foreign investors are allowed to own up to 51 per cent of a business which does not have NET infrastructure. That rate will increase to 65 per cent after three years. The foreign investment cap in businesses that have NET infrastructure is 49 per cent.
With one of the world's highest internet growth rates, Vietnam is attractive to investors. Internet users in Vietnam currently represent 23.5 per cent of the country's population and that figure is expected to rise to 35 per cent in 2010.
VNN
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