Vietnam records nearly three million telephone subcribers
HANOI - Vietnam had 2.95 million telephone subcribers at the end of August and this figure is expected to swell to 3.1 million by the end
of the year, an official said Thursday.
"This (August) figure includes around 480,000 mobile phone users and 78,000 internet subcribers" in a population of 77 million,
an official from the Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications (VNPT) told AFP.
Mobile phone use in Vietnam has grown as prices fall due to competition. The largest mobile providers are Vinaphone, the
largest local phone company, and Mobifone, a joint venture with Sweden's Kenvice.
International links were boosted in March, when Singapore and Vietnam inaugurated a direct submarine cable link.
The cable link between Singapore and Vietnam is part of the SEA-ME-WE3 submarine cable, the world's longest, which
connects more than 92 countries in the Pacific rim, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
The direct link could also be a backbone for growing Internet traffic and high-speed multimedia services.
Agence France Presse - August 31, 2000.
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