5G in Vietnam:

After more than a year of widespread commercialization, 5G networks in Vietnam have achieved one of the fastest growth rates in the region. However, behind these impressive figures lies a difficult problem: large-scale infrastructure investment has not yielded commensurate results, putting network operators under pressure to recoup their investment.

The full potential of 5G has not yet been exploited.

According to data from the Department of Telecommunications ( Ministry of Science and Technology ), as of the end of March 2026, Vietnam had deployed nearly 40,000 5G base stations, covering approximately 90% of the population with nearly 23 million subscribers. Regarding this new network technology, Vietnam ranks among the top in the region, possessing superior infrastructure compared to many other countries.

However, Vietnam faces a paradox: despite having a robust 5G infrastructure, its utilization rate is only approximately 20%. This means that a large portion of the 5G network's capacity remains unutilized. This situation becomes even more noteworthy as the next generation of networks – 6G – is about to be deployed worldwide .

Vietnam's 5G infrastructure is among the best in the region.

Currently, most users access 5G primarily for needs such as watching videos , accessing social media, online entertainment, or remote meetings – things that 4G or even 3G can easily fulfill. Meanwhile, applications that can create significant added value from the superior characteristics of 5G, such as real-time remote control, industrial automation, intelligent transportation, or large-scale Internet of Things (IoT), are still not widespread.

This situation is putting businesses in a difficult position because investing in 5G is not simply about installing more base stations. Network operators also have to spend tens of trillions of VND on core network equipment, bandwidth, optical transmission, operating systems, and security solutions. Without developing new high-value services, recouping their investment will be very difficult.

Regarding this issue, Nguyen Tuan Huy, Deputy Head of Technology at MobiFone, stated that if only considering selling data capacity to individual users, it would be impossible to recoup the investment costs for 5G. The majority of current users are not ready to pay extra for higher network speeds when their actual needs don't require it.

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Therefore, targeting businesses or governments is the crucial direction for 5G. Using it in e-government, logistics, or smart cities will fully exploit the superior advantages of 5G compared to previous network generations, shared Mr. Nguyen Tuan Huy.

The solution to the question of 5G's value.

If we consider 5G infrastructure as a digital highway, then what's needed now is a large volume of traffic. Among the areas with the potential to generate significant demand, smart city development is considered one of the most promising directions.

According to Nguyen Tuan Huy, Deputy Head of Technology at MobiFone, 5G networks and the IoT ecosystem can become the core foundation for building smart cities in Vietnam. This network infrastructure is capable of solving practical problems for citizens such as traffic congestion, flooding, environmental pollution, urban order, and food safety.

With its superior speed, extremely low latency, and ability to connect a large number of devices simultaneously, 5G enables the deployment of tens of thousands of traffic sensors, surveillance cameras, and environmental monitoring devices operating in real time in the transportation sector. Data is continuously transmitted to the control center, helping management agencies make faster and more accurate decisions.

In environmental management, sensors can provide early warning of air pollution hotspots or flooding risks. In the healthcare sector, high-speed data transmission helps support remote medical consultations or the urgent delivery of supplies by unmanned vehicles.

Currently, the government has assigned Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Da Nang, Hue, and Can Tho to implement smart city development according to a roadmap until 2030. This is seen as an opportunity for these localities to become large-scale "laboratories" for next-generation 5G applications, said Mr. Nguyen Tuan Huy.

Agreeing with the above viewpoint, economist Dinh Van Hoang believes that as Vietnam accelerates the deployment of smart cities, the demand for real-time data connectivity will increase sharply, thereby creating new revenue streams for network operators and improving the efficiency of infrastructure investment.

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Vietnam has progressed quite rapidly in the 5G rollout race. However, the success of this technology will not be measured by the number of base stations or subscribers, but by its ability to create new value for the economy and social life. To avoid the situation of "wide highways with few vehicles," the next phase needs to focus on promoting practical applications, especially in building smart cities. Only then will 5G truly become the driving force of digital transformation and digital economic development in Vietnam, shared Mr. Dinh Van Hoang.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/5g-tai-viet-nam-khi-ung-dung-chua-theo-kip-ha-tang-1178494.html