Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - As part of plans to catch upwith developed economies, Vietnam is looking to embrace the Fourth IndustrialRevolution (FIR), with 5G coverage one of the key steps.

Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong lastyear signed Resolution 52-NQ/TW on behalf of the Politburo outlining guidelinesand policies to actively participate in the FIR, which set a target ofaffordable nationwide 5G network coverage by 2030.

To realise this ambitious vision, the Government is planningto test fifth-generation mobile networks in major urban centres such as Hanoi andHCM City.

The Government has issued the first licence to test 5G forViettel, the country's largest mobile operator, with more than 60 millionsubscribers in a country with a population of nearly 100 million.

The company tested 5G in Hanoi and HCM City in May last year,and tests are expected to be completed this month.

In April 2019, Viettel said it had successfully tested a 5Gbroadcasting station in Hanoi at a speed of 600 to 700 Mbps, on a par withVerizon's network in the US.

Other mobile carriers including MobiFone and Vinaphone arealso expected to launch their own 5G networks next year.

MobiFone has received a licence to become the second operatorto conduct 5G network testing.

Notably, Viettel claimed that it had developed its own coretechnologies for 5G networks, including chips and devices. In fact, the groupsaid it was aiming to produce 80 percent of the core network infrastructureneeded for the network this year. The rest would come from outside suppliers.

MobiFone has chosen to go with Samsung technology, whileVinaphone is cooperating with Nokia.

In the process of Vietnam deploying 5G, many leadingtechnology corporations in the world have expressed their interest in workingclosely with the Government, carriers, and private enterprises to help thecountry properly implement its 5G coverage plan and commercialise the technologythis year.

5G technology would bring a new economy, helping the countrycreate a series of new products for smart cities, said the VietnamTelecommunications Authority (VNTA) under the Ministry of Information andCommunications.

In the first phase of 5G technology, many Vietnameseenterprises will focus their resources on producing 5G chipset processors.These are considered the "heart" of 5G technology.

Although there have been proactive steps in deploying a 5Gnetwork, analysts said the road ahead for Vietnamese carriers is full ofchallenges and opportunities.

The number of 5G subscribers in Vietnam is expected to reach6.3 million by 2025, according to a 5G development report published by Cisco inOctober.

By deploying 5G services, Vietnamese telecom companies couldraise their revenue by up to 300 million USD each year from 2025, it noted. 

However, Vietnamese mobile service providers would have toinvest 1.5-2.5 billion USD in infrastructure development from 2020-25 to launchand operate 5G services, the report said.

Cisco suggested Vietnam and Southeast Asian countries need toaddress the release of a slow frequency spectrum for 5G services while carriersneed to introduce 5G services with appropriate prices to encourage users tomove to higher speeds.

Le Dang Dung, chairman and acting general director ofViettel, said when 5G technology started to boom, Viettel will need its own 5Gequipment. Therefore, the group must find a way to successfully develop 5Gtechnology, he said.

More importantly, all 5G hardware and software products will beresearched and produced by Viettel in Vietnam to ensure information security, Dungsaid.

Determining the production of 5G chipsets is extremelydifficult and expensive, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications PhanTam said, adding that the ministry wants to form a community of businesses andexperts to share experiences of 5G chipset production in Vietnam in the nearfuture./.