MobiFone charts strategic course for 2025 with focus on digital transformation and 5G integration

On December 27, 2024, MobiFone Telecommunications Corporation convened its annual conference in Hanoi to outline its strategic roadmap for the upcoming fiscal year. The event served as a platform for leadership to review the firm’s performance amidst a rapidly shifting global telecommunications landscape and to align the company’s future operations with the broader digital transformation goals mandated by the Vietnamese government.

The gathering took place against the backdrop of the newly issued Resolution No. 57 by the Politburo, which emphasizes breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation, and national digital transformation. For MobiFone, 2024 represented a year of dual-layered challenges: the technical migration from 4G to 5G infrastructure and the strategic pivot toward becoming a comprehensive digital technology enterprise.

Financial Resilience and Operational Success in 2024

Despite macroeconomic headwinds and the high capital expenditure required for network modernization, MobiFone reported robust financial results for the 2024 fiscal year. The company successfully exceeded its key performance indicators, with pre-tax profits surpassing the set target by 20.1%. Notably, the corporation’s contribution to the state budget exceeded its assigned target by 56.7%, reflecting both efficient management and a broad revenue base.

The growth was particularly pronounced in the digital services sector, a critical pillar of the company’s long-term strategy. The adoption rates of specialized digital products underscore the shift in market demand:

• MobiFone Meet, the company’s proprietary conferencing solution, saw a remarkable growth of 1,050%.
• Cloud-based services expanded by 312%.
• MobiFone Invoice and the agricultural digital platform, mobiAgri, recorded growth rates of 58% and 49%, respectively.

These figures illustrate a successful diversification strategy, moving the company away from a reliance on traditional voice and SMS revenue toward value-added digital enterprise solutions.

The 5G Transition and Strategic Pivot

The transition to 5G is the cornerstone of MobiFone’s 2025 strategy. During the conference, Chairman Nguyen Hong Hien introduced a major shift in the company’s corporate philosophy. The previous slogan, "Moving telecommunications into a new space," has been replaced by "Accelerate – Breakthrough – Reach Out." This change in branding reflects a shift in operational focus: moving from simple telecommunications services to advanced telecommunications infrastructure, and from 5G as an add-on to 5G as the foundation of all digital operations.

The company has identified three strategic pillars to maintain its competitive edge: digital infrastructure, partner ecosystem development, and robust corporate governance. By prioritizing these areas, MobiFone intends to accelerate its evolution into a fully-fledged technology enterprise by the end of the decade.

Official Oversight and Government Expectations

Nguyen Hoang Anh, Chairman of the Commission for the Management of State Capital at Enterprises (CMSC), attended the conference to provide a high-level assessment of the firm’s trajectory. He noted that the achievement of 2,006 billion VND in pre-tax profit—representing 120% of the annual plan—is a testament to the effective management and persistent effort of the workforce.

However, the expectations for 2025 remain high. The CMSC has directed MobiFone to expedite its investment projects, particularly those related to 5G deployment and the construction of data centers. Mr. Anh emphasized that as the company grows, it must maintain a rigorous focus on information security and customer data protection, which are paramount in the digital age. Furthermore, he encouraged the expansion of services into high-growth sectors such as e-government, digital financial services, and digital health, noting that these areas are essential for national development.

Roadmap for 2030: Becoming a Technology Conglomerate

By 2030, MobiFone envisions itself as a leading technology group, providing the core digital infrastructure for the nation. To reach this objective, the company’s roadmap involves a multi-pronged approach:

1. Technological Integration: Integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced cloud computing into the current service portfolio.
2. Human Capital Development: A sustained commitment to internal training programs to ensure that the workforce possesses the scientific and technical skills necessary to manage complex digital networks.
3. Digital Governance: Strengthening internal management systems to ensure transparency, agility, and efficiency, which are critical when managing large-scale infrastructure projects.

The Broader Impact of Resolution 57

The mention of Resolution 57 is significant. By aligning its corporate goals with this directive, MobiFone is positioning itself as a primary instrument of the state’s digital economy policy. Chairman Hien articulated that the company stands at a unique crossroads. The directive from the Politburo provides a mandate to move beyond traditional boundaries.

"We are currently facing a historic opportunity to contribute our strength to the country’s development in a new era," Hien stated. He further added that the firm is prepared to implement its strategies more aggressively, with a focus on "comprehensive digital transformation." This implies that the coming year will likely see a surge in partnership agreements and the introduction of new digital products designed to increase the competitive capacity of Vietnamese businesses.

Analysis: Navigating the Competitive Landscape

The telecommunications sector in Vietnam is entering a phase of consolidation and rapid technological change. With the rollout of 5G, the barrier to entry for providing high-speed, low-latency services is high, requiring massive capital investment. MobiFone’s strategy to pivot toward digital services is a defensive and offensive move simultaneously. By becoming a provider of enterprise-grade digital solutions (such as Cloud and Invoice services), the company creates "stickiness" with its business clients, reducing churn and creating new revenue streams that are less susceptible to the price wars common in the consumer mobile sector.

The challenge for 2025 will be the execution of these capital-intensive projects while maintaining the profitability levels achieved in 2024. As the company moves away from the "telecom" label and toward "technology," it will face stiff competition from specialized IT service providers and other telecommunications giants. The focus on data security, as emphasized by Mr. Anh, is also a recognition of the growing risks associated with cyber threats in a digitally integrated economy.

Conclusion

As MobiFone concludes its review of 2024 and looks toward 2025, the narrative is one of managed transformation. The company has demonstrated that it can adapt to market pressures, but the coming years will require a deeper integration of advanced technology into its core business model. With the government’s full support for digital initiatives and a clear mandate to drive national technological progress, MobiFone is entering a critical period that will likely define its position in the Vietnamese market for the next decade. Whether it can successfully transition into a premier technology conglomerate will depend on its ability to turn the high-level ambitions of its "Accelerate – Breakthrough – Reach Out" strategy into concrete, scalable, and secure digital realities.