Internet in Vietnam to slow down during cable maintenance

An internet cable is seen at a server room in this picture illustration. Photo by Reuters/Kacper Pempel

Local users are likely to experience slow connection speeds through Monday.

Yes, it’s happening again.

The internet in Vietnam will lag for five days, from 2:00 a.m. on Thursday to 5:00 a.m. on Monday, when the Asia America Gateway (AAG) cable system has its scheduled maintenance.

Most likely it will take users in Vietnam longer to access websites or online services hosted outside the country during the period, local media reported, citing Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT).

The service provider, one of the biggest in the country, said it will temporarily address the problem by shifting to other land-based networks to ensure connection quality in the next few days.

The  AAG, a major submarine cable that connects Vietnam with the world, ruptured yet again on August 2. This year alone, it had already experienced problems in March and June, heavily affecting outbound internet traffic.

Vietnam has four submarine cable systems. The AAG went online in November 2009 stretching over 20,000 kilometers with a design capacity of 2 terabit/second. Southeast Asia is connected to the U.S. across the Pacific Ocean, via Guam and Hawaii.

The notorious line ruptured three times last year. In 2014 it went down twice.

Local telecom companies have been investing in new alternative systems to ease their reliance on the AAG. The new networks are expected to be completed soon, according to media reports.

Nearly 49 million people, more than half of Vietnam's population of 90 million, were online as of June 30, according to statistics compiled by Internet World Stats.

By VnExpress