Visitors brown a stall on the sideline of the seminar at the Mariot Hotel in Ha Noi yesterday. - VNS photo

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — The the time is ripe to deploy a 4G LTE network in Viet Nam and this can not be delayed, said former deputy minister of Information and Communications Le Nam Thang.

Thang made the comment at the 4G LTE International Conference & Expo 2016, themeded "Leveraging 4G LTE potentials, enhancing business efficiency and customer experience in the age of IoT" held yesterday in Ha Noi. The seminar aimed to discuss opportunities and obstacles in establishing 4G networks in Viet Nam

Speaking at the seminar, Thang said the deployment of 4G LTE technology would boost the development of broadband infrastructure. He noted that a World Bank study on the relationship between broadband and economic growth concluded that a 10 per centage point increase in fixed broadband penetration would increase GDP growth by 1.21 per cent in developed economies and 1.38 per cent in developing ones.

Mobile broadband only covers about 30 per cent of the population. "We need to accelerate the development of broadband infrastructure, especially 4G technology," Thang said, noting that according to International Telecommunication Union (ITU) standards, the speed of the 4G network will be similar to fixed copper cable networks.

Concerning the speed of 4G networks, Thang told participants that there had long been debates about the technology's speed. Thang said standards for 4G LTE networks were set by ITU in 2012 and Viet Nam has yet to have its network recognised by the ITU.

Thang said by August 2015 that 10 per cent of internet users worldwide used and in 2016, this ratio reached over 12 per cent.

Viet Nam has had 3G for seven years and 3G speed is limited, failing to meet the demands of users in big cities. To use e-govt and e-office systems users needed to get new technology with higher speeds.

According to Phan Tam, deputy minister of Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC), the Global Mobile Suppliers Association LTE continued to grow faster than any other mobile communications system technology. GSA also confirmed that global LTE subscriptions doubled in the past year to reach 1.29 billion in Q1 2016.

Currently, the 3G network has nationwide coverage, and the ministry has granted permission for testing the 4G LTE network. Three big network providers including Viettel, Mobifone, VNPT have been testing and finishing licensing procedures on 4G.

Tam said the Vietnamese Government wanted to help entrepreneurships and start-up businesses to develop new technologies by using 4G and the Internet of Things to enhance the country's competitiveness. Tam said the 4G network would open up new opportunities for small and medium-sized businesses.

Tran Tuan Anh. Head of Policy and Planning Department, Telecommunications Authority said after deploying 4G services, network providers must boost user numbers and provide content services in combination with partners.

Anh said that investment in 4G technology needed to meet the demand of the whole of society and investors should ensure service quality.

Mantosh Malhotra, Regional Head, Southeast Asia, Qualcomm Technologies Inc. said that Viet Nam was late in deploying 4G in comparison with other countries, but more importantly, Viet Nam deploy it effectively.

He said Viet Nam now accounted for 15 per cent of global smartphone exports and had advantages in producing phones.

According to Nguyen Duc Trung, Director of Telecommunications Authority, 4G trial licences granted to network providers, would expire on October 23 this year. The authority required them to report results.

As planned by the end of the third quarter or early fourth quarter of 2016, the MIC will officially grant licence to deploy 4G networks. — VNS