Military-run telecom provider Viettel on Thursday announced that its 4G subscribers reached 10.6 million by the end of March 2018, one year after its official launch of the service.

Viettel said the growth rate of 4G subscribers was 10 times higher than that of 3G services. The number of 4G subscribers accounted for around 20 per cent of its total customers—higher than the average rate of 10 to 15 per cent in Asian countries after one year of launching.

The group said the speed of the Vietnamese people in updating new technologies has been on the rise. 4G has become a familiar service to people not only in urban areas, but also in the mountainous and remote regions.

In addition, 4G has also been a foundation for implementation of many 4.0 projects of the society and the Government.

It was surprised that the southernmost province of Ca Mau has the highest Viettel 4G subscriber rate in the country, followed by Da Nang, Bac Ninh and Ha Noi.

Viettel said they provided several thousands of free 4G SIM card changes nationwide and online.

It has been welcomed by customers thanks to its tariffs, which are three times cheaper than those of 3G, while the speed is also six to 10 times faster.

The 4G service of Viettel was officially launched on April 18, 2017, with 36,000 base transceiver stations (BTSs) nationwide using the most modern 4-transmit-4-receiver (4T4R) technology in the world. — VNS