Le Doan Hop, Vietnam’s Information and Communications minister is urging telecom companies in the country to merge in order to avoid infrastructure redundancy, according to the Viet Nam News.
Speaking at a ministry review meeting, he was quoted saying…
Le Doan Hop, Vietnam’s Information and Communications minister is urging telecom companies in the country to merge in order to avoid infrastructure redundancy, according to the Viet Nam News.
Speaking at a ministry review meeting, he was quoted saying that a plan for infrastructure sharing should be drafted and that Vietnam only needs a maximum of four telcos, instead of nine at the moment.
Seven cellcos are currently operating in the country: Viettel, VinaPhone, MobiFone, S-Fone, Vietnamobile, EVN Telecom and Beeline. Indochina Telecom and the Multimedia Communications Corporation have licences but have yet to launch services.
But consolidation may already be on its way. State-owned VNPT recently submitted a reorganisation plan to the government for its mobile phone units, VinaPhone and MobiFone.
Under a new decree, effective from 1 June, a company that already owns 20% or more of a telecom operator will not be allowed to hold more than 20% of another operator in the same market.
Reports wrote that VNPT is therefore planning to sell shares in one of the two cellcos. The company also suggested merging the two units or selling shares in the merged group.
In addition, in early April, media company Vietnam Television Corporation (VTC) was reported to be considering buying a 12% stake in state-run EVN Telecom for VND800bn (US$38m), following technology company FPT’s withdrawal from the process.
