The two sides have committed to reserve their best resources to implement the project for the commercialization of a Macro 8T8R version by June 2021. They aim to be ready to commercialize the 5G Macro 64T64R station version by June 2022.

The signing ceremony

At the signing ceremony, Le Dang Dung, Viettel’s chair and CEO, said Viettel has successfully implemented the first 5G call for equipment made by Viettel in January 2020. It plans to complete the development of 5G core network in 2021 to create a complete 5G network made by Vietnam.

Nguyen Viet Quang, vice chair and CEO of Vingroup, said the 5G mobile base station, jointly researched and developed by VinSmart and Viettel, will be commercialized in mid-2021. These will be the first high-quality 5G stations with Vietnamese technology to be commercialized.

Mastering network infrastructure is critical

According to Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung, researching and producing telecom infrastructure equipment has been the aspiration of all the generations involved in the telecommunication industry.

Vietnam has chosen open technology to develop 5G, because the best way to ensure cybersecurity for 5G is open technology, so that all countries, when using 5G equipment of any technology firm, will be able to control security. This is the approach of Vietnam.

“And now, in 2020, we can proudly say that Vietnam can master nearly all telecom equipment, from equipment for users to equipment for network operators. Vietnam is one of a few countries which can do this,” Hung said.

Once telecom infrastructure becomes the infrastructure of the digital economy and cybersecurity and safety becomes a vital factor for digital transformation, the mastering of network infrastructure equipment will be of decisive importance.

Hung believes that Vietnam can be confident to step up national digital transformation because most telecom equipment and network security ecosystem products have been developed by Vietnamese enterprises.

Only four countries in the world can produce 5G equipment, and Vietnam is one. Therefore, Viettel and Vingroup show that Vietnamese enterprises can make Vietnamese technology products.

The ‘can do’ spirit

The creativity of Vietnamese is not inferior to anyone else. The problem is that they have to think they can do. With the ‘can do’ spirit, the brain is infinitely replenished with infinite energy, and difficult tasks are no longer difficult. Vietnamese people can create technological products.

Viettel and Vingroup are examples which prove that Vietnamese people and businesses ‘can do’, and can invent Vietnamese technologies.

Hung said Vietnamese do not cooperate much now because there is nothing that difficult that needs working together to solve. And because they still have not grown enough to have things that others don’t have or need. But once great missions are set, and everyone has their own original products, cooperation will naturally come.

Viettel is a state-owned enterprise, while VIngroup is a private corporation. But both of them have the same aspiration of creating Vietnamese technologies and introducing them all over the globe.

Viettel has a large enough initial telecom market with 11 countries and total population of 350 million, which will be the cradle for equipment to be completed. Meanwhile, Vingroup, from its very beginning, has been targeting the global market, especially the US and Europe.

Viettel has a long-term strategy on technology development, while Vingroup is flexible and very quick in making decisions. The former is good at software, while the latter is strong in hardware.

The cooperation between a state-owned enterprise and a private enterprise is expected to help promote the strength of both types of enterprises.

Viettel and Vingroup both have grown enough to have things that others don’t have, and therefore, they can cooperate with each other.

Vingroup focuses on radio, while Viettel on original signals processing, core network and integration into commercial products. The equipment of these two groups targets the global market.

Open technology creates digital belief

Vietnam has chosen open technology to develop 5G, because the best way to ensure cybersecurity for 5G is open technology, so that all countries, when using 5G equipment of any technology firm, will be able to control security. This is the approach of Vietnam.

Vietnam’s technology firms have committed that the countries using ‘Make in Vietnam’ 5G equipment will be provided tools to control their network security. Openness is the way to create global digital trust.

Because of the open approach, Vietnamese and foreign enterprises can cooperate in researching and developing Vietnam 5G equipment. 

Trong Dat

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