New opportunities for Vietnam's tourism industry.

The delegation from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism included the Standing Vice Chairman of Ninh Binh province Tong Quang Thin, the Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Quang Binh province Phan Phong Phu, the Director of the National Tourism Administration Nguyen Trung Khanh, the Deputy Director of the International Cooperation Department Tran Hai Van, the Deputy Director of the Copyright Department Le Minh Tuan, the Chairman of the Vietnam Film Association Do Le Hung Tu; representatives from several large corporations and businesses; and journalists.

Representing Google were Marc Woo, Country Manager for Vietnam, Google Asia-Pacific; and Lien Nguyen, Head of Government Relations. Also participating online from Bangkok and the UK were Clare Brooks, Southeast Asia Manager, Google Art & Culture, and Muk Anatachai, Head of YouTube Partnerships, Vietnam and Thailand.

At the meeting, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong thanked Google for supporting the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in promoting and introducing the image of Vietnam, its people, and culture to the public worldwide through important projects.

Deputy Minister Ho An Phong presented a commemorative gift to Mr. Marc Woo, Country Director of Google Asia-Pacific, Vietnam.

According to Nguyen Trung Khanh, Director of the Vietnam National Tourism Administration, the "Wonders of Vietnam" project was launched in January 2021 on the Google Arts & Culture (GAC) online platform with 35 online exhibitions and more than 1,300 photos of famous tourist destinations, heritage sites, natural landscapes, culture, and cuisine of Vietnam (https://artsandculture.google.com/search?q=Vietnam).

These exhibitions celebrated the natural landscapes, tangible and intangible heritage recognized by UNESCO in Quang Binh, Ninh Binh, Thua Thien Hue, Da Nang and Quang Nam.

Google has provided three tools: Art Camera (high-resolution and highly detailed artwork), Google Street View (remotely experiencing cultural and artistic destinations via a digital platform), and Table Top Scanner (viewing large collections and artifacts).

Through these tools, tourist attractions, museums, historical sites, etc., in Vietnam can record images and videos and upload them to the Google storage platform, allowing tourists worldwide to easily access and view 3D and 360-degree images with free explanations.

Representatives from Vietnam Airlines presented a commemorative gift to Mr. Marc Woo, Country Director for Vietnam, Google Asia-Pacific.

The “Vibrant Vietnam” project was also officially launched online on the GAC platform in July, focusing on showcasing the 54 ethnic groups and the diverse natural features of Vietnam from north to south (https://artsandculture.google.com/project/vibrant-vietnam-people-places-nature).

In particular, in the field of tourism, Director Nguyen Trung Khanh highly appreciated Google's cooperation in implementing the Vietnam tourism communication program on the YouTube platform with the theme "Vietnam: Travel to Love!" (2021-2022). The program officially launched 5 clips with the themes: "The Country and Its People"; "Cultural and Culinary Destinations"; "The Vastness of the Sea Calls"; "Returning to Ninh Binh"; and "Roam Phu Quoc".

This project has attracted the active participation of many famous and influential content creators on social media. The video clips have garnered millions of views on YouTube, receiving significant attention from the general public and media outlets.

Google also implements training programs to enhance digital skills and capabilities for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Vietnam, including tourism businesses. In June 2020 and November 2020, Google collaborated with the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (now the Vietnam National Tourism Administration) to organize two online seminars: “Taking Off! Domestic Tourism” and “Online Tourism Solutions for Localities”.

"This is practical and effective support in the context of Vietnam's tourism industry accelerating its digital transformation, leveraging the values ​​from the digital environment, and contributing to the recovery and more sustainable development of tourism in the future," Mr. Nguyen Trung Khanh emphasized.

Following the Covid-19 pandemic, Google also shared information with the tourism industry regarding the demand for digital information about Vietnamese tourism through its Travel Insights tools (including Destination Insights, Hotel Insights, and Travel Analytics Center). From this, Vietnam's tourism sector has utilized and disseminated this information to localities and tourism businesses to understand market trends and support the recovery of the tourism industry in localities in particular and Vietnam in general.

A delegation from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and representatives from Google's leadership at its US headquarters.

Proposing several areas to enhance cooperation with Google in the future, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong stated that, in the field of improving policies on culture and tourism, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism hopes that Google will pay attention to and share international experiences on the laws of countries around the world related to the development of the cultural industry, and the system of policies on culture and tourism in the future, including legal regulations on performing arts, fine arts, photography and exhibitions…

In the field of tourism, the Deputy Minister suggested continuing to strengthen cooperation between Google and the Vietnamese tourism industry based on priorities such as strongly innovating the content and methods of tourism promotion and advertising; building a smart tourism ecosystem associated with digital transformation and green transformation; promoting administrative procedure reform in tourism associated with digital transformation; developing tourism human resources; and supporting the tourism industry in effectively utilizing Google's digital tools…

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also requested Google to continue paying attention to and effectively implementing projects promoting the image of Vietnam, its people, and its culture on the Google Arts & Culture online platform.

Based on a proposal from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, representatives from Google stated that they will continue to implement projects aimed at supporting the communication and promotion of Vietnamese tourism and culture; and supporting digital transformation and digital content creation in the areas under the Ministry's management.

Specifically, YouTube will select and invite a number of popular content creators from key markets to Vietnam to promote Vietnam's scenic attractions and culture to these markets and internationally; and continue to support the YouTube channel of the Vietnam National Tourism Administration.

Regarding the Google Art & Culture platform, discussions are underway with the Department of International Cooperation (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) to incorporate several UNESCO-recognized sites onto the platform, and to explore the possibility of localities proactively developing online exhibitions with technical support from Google Art & Culture.

In the tourism sector, Google is collaborating with the Vietnam National Tourism Administration to support tourism businesses by organizing workshops, training sessions, and introducing Google's free tourism products. They are also assisting businesses in developing marketing plans using Google products to expand into international markets.

The delegation is at Google headquarters.

Deputy Minister Ho An Phong highly appreciated Google Doodles, especially the times when major, typical, and distinctive events of Vietnam were prominently featured on the page. In addition, the Deputy Minister stated that Google plays a significant role in the development of tourism and the cultural industry in Vietnam.

Regarding Google's proposal to amend Vietnam's Advertising Law, Deputy Minister Ho An Phong acknowledged Google's comments aimed at ensuring the amended law creates fair opportunities for businesses participating in digital advertising. The Deputy Minister stated that he would instruct relevant agencies of the Ministry to incorporate the contributions of companies and corporations into the drafting process of the Law for submission to the National Assembly for approval.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will direct and work alongside localities to continue implementing projects with Google. It will support Vietnamese businesses, creating favorable conditions for them to promote Vietnamese tourism products to the world, especially to the US market.

Deputy Minister Ho An Phong expressed his desire to connect Vietnamese cinema with the United States. This is one way to introduce destinations, including filming locations and cultural treasures of Vietnam, potentially in collaboration with Hollywood films…; thereby leading to major film projects shot in Vietnam.

Google Corporation

Google (Google LLC) is a multinational American technology corporation specializing in online services and software products. Its headquarters are located in Mountain View, California. Founded in 1998, Google initially focused solely on search engines. Today, the company has expanded its operations into numerous other areas, including online advertising, cloud computing, software, and hardware. Google is currently one of the most valuable corporations in the world, and its products are used by billions of people worldwide.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/hop-tac-quang-ba-van-hoa-du-lich-with-google-post832848.html