Laos has a new mobile operator called Unitel, launched as a joint venture between Vietnam’s Viettel and local partner – Lao Asia Telecom. Viettel, which is owned by the Vietnamese army, owns 49% of the company and has invested $79 million in the new network so far. This is their second overseas investment, following the launch of Metfone in Cambodia.
The new carrier’s General Director, Le Huu Hien, told the Vietnamese official news agency, Saigon GP Daily that the new network has the largest infrastructure of the five mobile service providers in Laos. It covers the entire country with its nearly 900 base transmission stations and 8,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables.
For the record, there are just under 2.5 million mobile phone subscribers, representing a population penetration level of 36%.
[Via: CellularNews]