Vietnam’s telecom giants start commercial testing of 5G technology

Three Vietnamese largest telecom providers namely VinaPhone, MobiFone, and Viettel begin commercial test of the fifth-generation (5G) in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Kinh te & Do thi Newspaper ported.

The giant Viettel Military Industry and Telecom Group (Viettel) officially launched the commercial 5G pilot in Hanoi on November 30. Viettel invited customers to experience 5G on a double-decker bus around Hoan Kiem Lake, with the 5G download speed of 500Mbps.

Hanoi is one of the first cities in Vietnam to commercially test 5G technology. Viettel has the largest number of 5G broadcast stations in the city. In the 5G network infrastructure, it has used both imported equipment and self-produced equipment. Customers in Hoan Kiem, Ba Dinh and Hai Ba Trung districts can experience 5G without having to upgrade their SIMs.

Viettel officially launched the commercial 5G pilot in Hanoi on November 30. Photo: Kinhtedothi.vn

During the trial time, Viettel will offer free 5G data with unlimited capacity so that customers can fully experience its service.

Viettel said that it will continue to expand its 5G network in Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City.

MobiFone also piloted commercial 5G in Ho Chi Minh City from November 27 to November 30. At a testing point in District 1, the 5G download speed is 600-800 Mbps with a peak of 1.5Gbps that is equivalent to the speed of high-end fiber-optic Internet.

MobiFone said it has planned to provide 5G coverage in the entire District 1 next month. To utilize MobiFone's 5G network, users need to have smart phones that are compatible with the 5G frequency band in Vietnam.

MobiFone is also about to establish experience zones at the center city where 4K video, 8K, virtual reality games AR/VR-AI learning, IoT, among others will be provided on 5G platforms.
On November 26, customers in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City had the opportunity to experience VinaPhone 5G with a download speed of more than 1 Gbps.

Showrooms introducing technology and applications of the 5G network will also be set up in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Vinaphone will offer many attractive incentives for customers to use and experience its 5G network.

In Hanoi, VNPT will deploy 5G in Hanoi Pedestrian Street and Hai Ba Trung District, while in Ho Chi Minh City, the test sites will be Nguyen Hue Pedestrian Street, Notre Dame Cathedral, and city centers districts 3 and 10.

Previously, the Ministry of Information Technology and Communications allowed the three local telecom giants Viettel, VinaPhone and MobiFone to launch the pilot commercial operation of the 5G network. Their licences will expire on June 30 next year.

The commercial pilot will help the telecom providers assess their technology and the market size before officially providing 5G commercial operations.