Vietnam had over 14.5 million Internet users, or 17.5 percent of its population, by early this month, compared with the respective figures of 9.9 million and 12 percent in early December 2005.

Of the 14.5 million users, over 4 million are subscribers, including 454,000 broadband ones, the Vietnam Internet Network Information Center told Xinhua on Wednesday, noting that the country's total international bandwidth currently stands at 6,325 Mbps. Vietnam with a population of over 83 million has so far this year signed up 10 million fixed and mobile phone subscribers, a year-on-year surge of 188 percent. It currently has 25.5 million phone subscribers, many of them are mobile phone ones.

Under Vietnam's strategy on developing information technology and telecommunications, every 100 residents will have 32-42 telephones, over 10 personal computers, and 8-12 Internet subscribers, and 30 percent of them will use broadband Internet services, by 2010, the center said.

Source: Xinhua