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In early October, Viettel rolled out two new prepaid 5G plans, YT150 and YT200.
YT150 costs VND150,000 (US$6) per month for 4 GB of daily data bundled with YouTube Premium membership.
For VND200,000, the YT200 plan also throws in voice call perks and unlimited data usage on select social media platforms.
It had previously offered a VND150,000 monthly 5G bundle with free CapCut Pro.
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A smartphone user browses content beneath the YouTube logo. Photo by Bao Lam |
Pairing digital entertainment and creative apps with mobile plans is hardly novel, but telecom service providers are opting for that strategy rather than engaging in a race to the bottom on price.
Nevertheless, the free entertainment ecosystems translate into savings for the right consumer.
By themselves, YouTube Premium costs VND79,000 a month and 4 GB mobile data daily costs VND120,000-130,000.
Thus, the bundles can trim monthly spending by more than 25%.
"These subscription bundles encourage customers to burn through larger data quotas, which is vital as the country accelerates nationwide 5G adoption," an industry executive explained.
A carrier sales representative noted that the shift gained traction once monthly 5G allowances surged into hundreds of gigabytes amid a simultaneous rise in consumers' willingness to pay for premium digital services.
Carriers have not shared adoption figures, though an industry representative acknowledged the strategy remains somewhat niche because bundled perks do not carry universal appeal.
Most current options lean heavily into streaming video, social feeds, and creative content tools, which cater to specific user habits rather than the wider market.
At a late September press briefing by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Authority of Telecommunications pointed to healthy, transparent competition among operators as the cornerstone keeping the nation's connectivity infrastructure among the world's most competitive.
Recent metrics from network intelligence company Ookla rank both of Vietnam’s mobile and fixed broadband speeds among the global top 10.
Now, 4G networks reach 99.8% of the population, 5G signals cover over 90%, fiber-optic broadband connects every rural commune, and mobile internet fees remain among the world's most affordable.
