Telecom providers increased 3G fees in order to reinvest in their mobile
networks, VinaPhone deputy director Ho Duc Thang has said.
Customers deserved the best service for their money, Thang said at an
online discussion organised by Infonet online newspaper on October 17,
so VinaPhone was building better 3G services with the Ministry of
Information and Communications (MIC).
However, he warned that
customers should not expect service quality to improve immediately. “We
have to build the network according to a detailed plan so we are not
able to finish it immediately,” he said. “While the network is in
adjustment, the service quality may not be good.”
After MIC
approved the three giant telecom providers’ proposal to increase the 3G
fee, they all raised the monthly full-package fee to 70,000 VND (3.3
USD) for 600GB. Many wondered if they had colluded, although
representatives of the providers denied this.
Tran Anh Son,
deputy director general of the Competition Administration Department
under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said that the department had
asked the telecom enterprises to provide relevant information.
“We will collect information and find out more details. After that, we
can give our opinion on whether their simultaneous fee increase violates
the law on competition,” he said.
Nguyen Viet Dung, head of
Viettel Group’s business department, admitted that the company had
received complaints from customers but said that 3G signal quality was a
“top priority” for Viettel.
“After being allowed to provide
3G services, the corporation invested in more infrastructure than any
other, with 26,000 emission stations. We will continue to add more
stations,” he said.
Nguyen Duc Trung, deputy general director
of the Authority of Telecommunications under MIC, said that the fee
increase was unavoidable.
Most telecom equipment in Vietnam
was imported and expensive, yet the service fee was only 39.6 per cent
of fees in other ASEAN countries, he said.
“The telecom
providers need to adjust the fee. If there is not any change in the
market, the companies will continue increasing the fee in the future, as
they registered with MIC to ensure the fee is not lower than the cost,”
Trung added.-VNA