Proposal to delay 2G shutdown time

Mr. Nguyen Phong Nha, Deputy Director of the Department of Telecommunications, said that the time to turn off 2G waves will be delayed - Photo: T.HA

The information was given at a regular press conference of the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) held on the afternoon of September 13.

Mr. Nguyen Phong Nha, Deputy Director of the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Information and Communications, said that as of September 8, there were about 3.4 million 2G Only subscribers in the entire Vietnamese telecommunications market.

"Thus, compared to July 2024, in just over a month, the number of 2G Only subscribers has decreased by more than 5.3 million subscribers. This is an effort demonstrating the drastic direction of the Ministry of Information and Communications and the seriousness of mobile businesses in implementing the plan to stop 2G technology of network operators, converting subscribers from 2G to 4G in the recent past," he said.

Why is it necessary to delay the 2G shutdown time ?

However, according to Mr. Nguyen Phong Nha, based on the recommendations of telecommunications enterprises as well as the actual situation of more than 3.4 million 2G subscribers, the Telecommunications Department is consulting with the leaders of the Ministry of Information and Communications to temporarily suspend part or further delay the time of the regulation to turn off 2G Only waves.

The purpose is to ensure that network operators have more time to support people as well as continue to inform people about the 2G shutdown regulations.

At the same time, network operators also want to promptly support 100% of 4G terminals to people when converting and ensure the most stable service quality is maintained.

In addition, recently, telecommunications businesses had to focus all resources on overcoming the consequences of natural disasters caused by storm No. 3, so support for 2G conversion was also interrupted.

There is no specific time to cut off 2G signal yet.

Currently, in the "sprint" phase, network operators have been implementing solutions to convert the remaining 2G Only subscribers on the network such as supporting the cost of 4G Only phones combined with conversion packages, and supporting up to 100% of the cost of 4G push-button phones, according to the assessment of the Telecommunications Department.

All carriers prepare a number of 4G phones to support (100% of the cost) for their 2G Only subscribers.

According to information from network operators, the number of 2G Only subscribers who have not yet converted mainly includes vulnerable groups, subscribers from poor households, and subscribers in hard-to-reach areas such as remote, mountainous areas.

In addition, a relatively large proportion of 2G Only subscribers are located in areas currently affected by storms and floods, making it difficult for network operators to contact and make direct contact with customers to implement the conversion.

"On September 10, the Ministry of Information and Communications met with telecommunications businesses to understand the difficulties of businesses in implementing support for converting 2G Only subscribers. Currently, the Department of Telecommunications is submitting to the Ministry of Information and Communications for consideration to extend the deadline for stopping providing services to 2G Only subscribers. After having a specific time, the Department will widely inform," said Mr. Nguyen Phong Nha.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/de-xuat-lui-thoi-gian-tat-song-2g-20240913155241816.htm