Vietnamese mobile operator Vietnamobile plans to seek government help staying afloat, after complaining that the local telecom market is set up to unfairly benefit state-owned incumbents.
Vietnamobile, which is jointly owned by Hutchison Telecom International and Hanoi Telecom, has made significant investments in the Vietnamese market since launching in 2007.
But Hanoi Telecom president Pham Ngoc Lang has revealed it will lodge a complaint to the prime minister and the ICT ministry, detailing the difficulties the mobile operator is facing developing its network due to an uneven playing field, VietnamNet Bridge reported.
According to Lang, Vietnamese telecom policy always favors and seeks to protect state-owned corporations at the expense of private players.
He pointed to connection fee policies which discourage the development of smaller networks, as well as exorbitant prices for base station access, transmission fees and telephone pole rental.
Lang claims the company's very survival hinges on a leveling of the playing field.
Besides the allegedly unfair telecom policies, Vietnamobile is facing stiff competition in a crowded market. Vietnam currently has seven mobile operators, serving a population of around 87 million as of the most recent UN estimates from 2010.
Foreign investors have increasingly become turned off by these market dynamics. Earlier this year, Russia's VimpelCom revealed plans to exit Vietnam, selling its stake in unprofitable joint venture GTel Mobile at a significant loss.
Vietnamobile first launched CDMA services in 2007 under the brand HT Mobile. In 2008, the company received government approval to switch to GSM technology, and the company launched services under the rebranded Vietnamobile name in 2009.