Vietnam can annually reap billions of U.S. dollars after 2010 from added value services for mobile phone users like messaging and provision of ringtones, games and wallpapers, local newspaper Pioneer reported Wednesday.

The added value services in the country will post annual growth of 100 percent, the report quoted some corporate officials of big local mobile phone operators and service providers as saying. The officials said the service most favored by phone users, especially youths, are provision of ringtones, logos, picture messages, and lucky messages (a form of lottery).

From late 2006, new services based on advanced information and communication technologies like provision of downloadable music clips, video streaming (which allows users to watch online video clips on their phones), and information search will develop in Vietnam, they predicted.

Vietnam, with a population of 83.1 million, now has nearly 10 million mobile phone users, said the report.

Under Vietnam's strategy on developing information technology and telecommunications, every 100 residents will have 32-42 phones, over 10 personal computers, and 8-12 Internet subscribers by 2010. According to the International Telecommunications Union, Vietnam has ranked second in the world, after China, in telecommunications growth rate in recent years.

Source: Xinhua