Shoppers test out different mobile devices at a Viettel store on Ngoc Khanh Street, Hanoi (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam’s much vaunted digital access and advantages that arise fromit could run out of steam unless it is renewed and made more substantial,experts have said.
The majority of Vietnamese mobile users are becoming more and more active inaccessing digital content on the mobile platform, and the country is seen as a risingstar in the Southeast Asian and Asia-Pacific mobile applications markets.
However, some tech experts are unsure that this trend can be maintained.
Tran Khanh, a legal representive and Director of Hanoi-based tech company TOPSInternational JSC., said that Vietnamese people like newtechnology and conveniences, and therefore, both young and old generations arehooked on their smartphones.
Late last month, the Facebook Official Gaming Agency in Vietnam,Adsota, released its 2017 report on the country’s mobile advertising market andmonetisation of apps.
Extracting from Google’s statistics, the report said that each Vietnamesemobile phone user downloads and installs five new applications a month, mainlygames, social apps, and music players.
The number of new apps installed per person per month was impressive, rankingsecond in Southeast Asia and seventh in the world, the report said.
It foresaw a future boom of mobile applications on both Android and iOSplatforms.
Khanh said he was certain that Vietnamese people, as in any other country,would spend more money on better mobile applications for legitimate use andpurposes, especially when the free versions do not meet their demand.
Logically, in the near future, poor quality applications will be eliminated viamarket competition or by Google and Apple themselves, he said.
According to another 2017 report by Appota Corporation (Appota), a Vietnamesemobile apps service provider, the country’s smartphone app usage increased by21 percent year-on-year.
Their data also showed a high number of smartphone users in Vietnam, reaching85 percent of the population in urban areas and 68 percent in ruralareas.
However, both reports also showed that Vietnam is one of the countries withthe highest uninstallation rates in the world.
Out of the total number of applications installed on Vietnamese smartphones, upto 15 percent were never used and about 13 percent were just usedseveral times before they became obsolete.
Nguyen Khoa Hong Thanh, cofounder and managing director of Isobar Vietnam, aconsulting and digital marketing agency in HCM City, told Vietnam Newsthat most people prefer well known and free mobile apps for communication andentertainment, like Facebook, YouTube or Vietnam’s own Zalo.
Therefore, the unused and frequently uninstalled apps are mostly lesser knownones that are heavily dependent on running advertisements, with less emphasison building quality and branding.
Therefore, Thanh said, the Vietnamese mobile application market still presentedmany opportunities and challenges, because only mobile apps of good quality,versatility and easy access can succeed.
While agreeing with Thanh, Khanh also expressed some caution about theVietnamese mobile market’s future.
“Despite the growing numbers, the country’s mobile application market is almostat its saturation point, as too many apps have been out on the stores over thepast five years,” Khanh said.
Noting that quite a few Vietnamese tech startups are looking to generatedifferent kinds of mobile apps, even going into virtual reality and artificialintelligence, he said it was possible that successes like Nguyen Ha Dong’s 2013hit, "Flappy Bird," can still happen.
Whether they can sustain the success and not die a premature death is anotherstory, he added.
Nguyen Tuan Cuong, cofounder of Amanotes JSC., said at the Vietnam Web Summitheld in Hanoi last month that campaigns and offers that sought to push down thetop apps were many, so competition was fierce.
He said mobile app advertisers and marketers should focus on improving productquality and user experience, rather than try to maximise returns on investmentand advertising through “illicit means.” This is important if they want toretain user numbers, extend the lifecycle of their mobile apps and increaserevenues, he added.
The two reports listed above also mentioned the growing trend of mobilecommerce and shopping apps, most popular among people aged 18 to 25 in majorurban areas like Hanoi and HCM City.
Shopee was 2017’s fastest growing mobile commerce app with around 10 millionusers, followed by Sendo and Tiki.-VNA
The majority of Vietnamese mobile users are becoming more and more active inaccessing digital content on the mobile platform, and the country is seen as a risingstar in the Southeast Asian and Asia-Pacific mobile applications markets.
However, some tech experts are unsure that this trend can be maintained.
Tran Khanh, a legal representive and Director of Hanoi-based tech company TOPSInternational JSC., said that Vietnamese people like newtechnology and conveniences, and therefore, both young and old generations arehooked on their smartphones.
Late last month, the Facebook Official Gaming Agency in Vietnam,Adsota, released its 2017 report on the country’s mobile advertising market andmonetisation of apps.
Extracting from Google’s statistics, the report said that each Vietnamesemobile phone user downloads and installs five new applications a month, mainlygames, social apps, and music players.
The number of new apps installed per person per month was impressive, rankingsecond in Southeast Asia and seventh in the world, the report said.
It foresaw a future boom of mobile applications on both Android and iOSplatforms.
Khanh said he was certain that Vietnamese people, as in any other country,would spend more money on better mobile applications for legitimate use andpurposes, especially when the free versions do not meet their demand.
Logically, in the near future, poor quality applications will be eliminated viamarket competition or by Google and Apple themselves, he said.
According to another 2017 report by Appota Corporation (Appota), a Vietnamesemobile apps service provider, the country’s smartphone app usage increased by21 percent year-on-year.
Their data also showed a high number of smartphone users in Vietnam, reaching85 percent of the population in urban areas and 68 percent in ruralareas.
However, both reports also showed that Vietnam is one of the countries withthe highest uninstallation rates in the world.
Out of the total number of applications installed on Vietnamese smartphones, upto 15 percent were never used and about 13 percent were just usedseveral times before they became obsolete.
Nguyen Khoa Hong Thanh, cofounder and managing director of Isobar Vietnam, aconsulting and digital marketing agency in HCM City, told Vietnam Newsthat most people prefer well known and free mobile apps for communication andentertainment, like Facebook, YouTube or Vietnam’s own Zalo.
Therefore, the unused and frequently uninstalled apps are mostly lesser knownones that are heavily dependent on running advertisements, with less emphasison building quality and branding.
Therefore, Thanh said, the Vietnamese mobile application market still presentedmany opportunities and challenges, because only mobile apps of good quality,versatility and easy access can succeed.
While agreeing with Thanh, Khanh also expressed some caution about theVietnamese mobile market’s future.
“Despite the growing numbers, the country’s mobile application market is almostat its saturation point, as too many apps have been out on the stores over thepast five years,” Khanh said.
Noting that quite a few Vietnamese tech startups are looking to generatedifferent kinds of mobile apps, even going into virtual reality and artificialintelligence, he said it was possible that successes like Nguyen Ha Dong’s 2013hit, "Flappy Bird," can still happen.
Whether they can sustain the success and not die a premature death is anotherstory, he added.
Nguyen Tuan Cuong, cofounder of Amanotes JSC., said at the Vietnam Web Summitheld in Hanoi last month that campaigns and offers that sought to push down thetop apps were many, so competition was fierce.
He said mobile app advertisers and marketers should focus on improving productquality and user experience, rather than try to maximise returns on investmentand advertising through “illicit means.” This is important if they want toretain user numbers, extend the lifecycle of their mobile apps and increaserevenues, he added.
The two reports listed above also mentioned the growing trend of mobilecommerce and shopping apps, most popular among people aged 18 to 25 in majorurban areas like Hanoi and HCM City.
Shopee was 2017’s fastest growing mobile commerce app with around 10 millionusers, followed by Sendo and Tiki.-VNA
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