Vientiane (VNA) – Star Telecom (Unitel), a joint venture between the Military Industry and Telecoms Group (Viettel) of Vietnam and the Lao Asia Telecom under the Lao Ministry of National Defence, has been recognised as the telecom operator with the best network infrastructure in Laos.
The result was announced at a ceremony held in Vientiane on September 26.
The recognition comes from the Speedtest Awards presented by Ookla, a globally trusted organisation, based on objective analysis of data collected from users’ daily experience and service testing.
According to Ookla, Unitel’s Speedtest Connectivity Score set new benchmarks not only in infrastructure scale but also in speed and customer experience, reaching levels comparable with advanced ASEAN markets.
The award is a prestigious title presented to telecom providers delivering outstanding service quality, assessed through criteria such as access speed and user experience.
Soutchai Lorlonesy, Director General of the Department of Telecommunications Management under the Lao Ministry of Technology and Communications, said the award is not only a recognition for one enterprise but also a source of pride for the Lao telecommunications sector.
The network enables Lao citizens to access online services of the Party and State as well as e-commerce platforms more quickly and conveniently, he noted, describing it as a key foundation for digital transformation and socio-economic development.
Over its 16 years of development, Unitel has expanded telecommunications infrastructure from 2G to 5G, with nearly 10,000 mobile base transceiver stations (BTS) covering 95% of the population and over 43,000 km of fibre optic cable across Laos. These efforts have helped bridge the digital gap between regions and provided a strong basis for digital service development.
Phan Xuan Luong, Deputy Technical Director of Unitel, said the company will continue investing to expand its network to remote and mountainous areas, thereby further reducing the digital gap across the country. At the same time, it will step up measures to ensure user safety in cyberspace.
The award not only demonstrates Unitel’s development but also contributes to enhancing Laos’ national standing and affirms the crucial role of digital infrastructure in the country's regional and international integration./.
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