By March 19, 25,000 customers booked an iPhone on VinaPhnone’s website and nearly 20,000 people registered for iPhones on Viettel’s website.
The two companies are prepared to introduce iPhones in Vietnam. VinaPhone Deputy Director Ho Duc Thang stated that his company would launch iPhone at 25 shops and agents in Hanoi, HCM City, Da Nang and some more cities on the morning of March 26. Customers will be offered international warranty service for 12 months.
The employees of these shops have been trained to instruct customers on how to use iPhone and VinaPhone’s policy for iPhone users. Members of VinaPhone’s iPhone project will supervise the shops.
By March 19, over 25,000 people successfully registered for iPhones on VinaPhone’s website. The firm estimated that around 50 percent really want to purchase one. VinaPhone will use the principle of first come, first served.
Viettel is also preparing to introduce iPhone on March 26, at 28 mobile phone supermarkets in 25 provinces and cities. Viettel will also supply a 12-month warranty like VinaPhone.
By March 19, around 20,000 people registered for iPhones on Viettel’s website, but the company has not opened online registration because it has not released its price policy yet.
Among the three largest mobile operators who have the right to distribute iPhone in Vietnam – Viettel, MobiFone, VinaPhone – VinaPhone was the first to announce on March 17 that it would begin distribution as of March 26. VinaPhone shocked subscribers by stating that “users will have to pay only 4 million dong” to own an iPhone.
This information spread at rocket speed. VinaPhone’s website was jammed with a sudden increase in visitors and many newspapers reported this was a second-to-none event in the mobile market. At 4 million dong, the luxury iPhone can become a popular one.
But only two hours later, Viettel released its plans for iPhone distribution, scheduled for March 26, with a service pack that allows clients to obtain an iPhone for zero dong. Viettel will announce detailed prices and service packs over the next several days.
Meanwhile, Dinh Viet Hung, chief of MobiFone's marketing department, confirmed that MobiFone would enter the Apple phones distribution network next month.
iPhone is among the most popular smart phones in Vietnam, but official products may not see good sales figures as many users have chosen to buy handsets from unofficial distributors at cheaper prices. Until now, customers had been buying the phones via foreign e-commerce websites or by getting foreign friends to buy the products for them.
Currently, Viettel, MobiFone and VinaPhone are deploying 3G services to offer high broadband internet access and high speed data transfers. The 3G-compatible iPhone will give a major boost to the development of 3G services in Vietnam.
According to Apple's website, the iPhone is on sale in 94 countries and territories worldwide.
