Vietnamese state-owned operator VNPT is expected to be restructured this month, with one of its two mobile units likely to be separated into a standalone company.
Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Bac Son toldVietnamNet Bridge that a restructuring is imminent.
The restructuring will aim to ensure that both the separated network company and the remaining parts of VNPT are strong national businesses, the minister said.
The final organizational terms of the separation are yet to be decreed, but most experts expect the company to split off its MobiFone mobile brand, one of the biggest brands in Vietnam.
The news site also notes that MobiFone is growing consistently and has a better independent business model than the other parts of VNPT, including the operator's Vinaphone mobile brand.
VNPT had originally wanted to merge Vinaphone and MobiFone into a single entity, to comply with new restrictions preventing cross-ownership in telecom companies beyond 20% for each. But the telecom ministry ruled in April that the restructuring could not result in the loss of one of the market's three largest mobile brands.
A combined Vinaphone and MobiFone would also have an estimated domestic market share of around 60%, which would be harmful to competition.