Vietnamese military-owned operator Viettel has announced that its subsidiary in Laos Unitel has become the first mobile operator in the market to launch eSIM technology.
The Unitel eSIM service was introduced at the beginning of March, and Unitel is aiming to encourage at least 10,000 customers to exchange their physical SIMs for eSIMs by the end of 2020.
With the launch, Laos became the seventh of the 10 ASEAN member states to introduce eSIM technology.
It is also the fourth market in Southeast Asia that Viettel has introduced eSIMs to. The company and its subsidiaries were the first mobile operators to offer the technology in Myanmar, Vietnam and Cambodia.
Meanwhile another Viettel mobile brand in Laos, Metfone, has become the first operator in the market to launch mobile credit top ups using QR code scanning rather than scratch cards.
Viettel deputy general director Tao Duc Thang said the introduction of eSIM technology marks the beginning stages of Viettel’s goal of digitally transforming the global telecommunications landscape, and becoming a pioneer in IoT technologies.
“Viettel has well-prepared platforms and infrastructure and has made digital transformations in its fields such as telecommunications and information technology,” he said.
“This includes application of the latest technologies in the world for a more convenient life.”