If the problems can be settled, Vietnam’s technology firms will have opportunities to develop robustly and become equal to foreign firms, according to Nguyen The Tan, CEO of VCCorp.

Tan, at the national forum on Vietnam’s technology firm development, held in Hanoi some days ago, proposed that the government reconsider taxing creative technology firms.

“It is necessary to clarify what the tax policy should strive for – trying to collect as much as possible, or helping technology firms develop,” he said.

In China, Alibaba and Baidu enjoy a minus tax mechanism. In the US, Amazon has profit of $11 billion a year, but it can enjoy tax exemptions.

In Vietnam, digital content firms have to pay 15-20 percent of total revenue, and corporate income tax.

Meanwhile, their development is being hindered by the old way of thinking: businesses can only do services shown in operation licenses.

Tan, in his speeches delivered at previous events, repeatedly complained about the unfair treatment to Vietnamese digital content firms and foreign firms which provide services to Vietnam across borders.

Google and Facebook, for example, do not have to pay tax when providing services to Vietnamese, while Vietnamese firms have to pay four kinds of taxes and fees.

While Google and Facebook don’t need a license to provide services, Vietnamese firms can only provide services after getting a licenses

Everyone, including companies, individuals, newspapers and non-government organizations and television stations, can produce content and post information on Google and Facebook. Meanwhile, Vietnam’s digital content producers cannot work with each other to produce content and post information on each other’s platforms.

“Policies must be applied for all. Businesses must be on the same level playing field,” Tan said, adding that digital content is a big industry with revenue of up to $1 billion.

Regarding the legal framework, Tan said Vietnam’s technology firms have to run on a platform created by an old way of thinking.

“Old management thinking imposed on new technology services is just like a dinosaur society building a legal framework for human beings,” he commented.

Agreeing with Tan, a businessman who asked to be anonymous said Vietnamese government officials have spent too much time arguing if Grab needs to be treated as a taxi firm or a ride-hailing app, though it is clear that this is a technological solution.

“This is a typical example showing the old way of thinking of the policymakers in Vietnam,” he said.

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