HCMC — With the problems in the Intra Asia (IA) undersea cable line and disruptions in the Asia America Gateway (AAG) and Asia Pacific Gateway (APG) cable systems not resolved so far, Vietnam’s international Internet traffic has remained severely affected.
The IA cable suffered a rupture on February 18, and the problem is expected to be fixed by the end of this month, said one Internet service provider.
Meanwhile, the APG undersea cable, which was disrupted on December 13, has not been completely fixed, while repair work on the AAG cable is expected to be completed by mid-March.
As a result, many Internet users have reported slow speed at certain times, while some have said they are facing trouble accessing storage or video-streaming services such as Google Drive and Netflix, especially in the evenings.
Vu The Binh, general secretary of the Vietnam Internet Association, said Internet service providers are rerouting Internet traffic to other cables to minimize the impact of the disruptions.
This is not the first time that three undersea cables have broken down at the same time, he noted. In late 2019, disruptions in the AAG, IA, and AAE-1 cables seriously affected Internet traffic in the country, he said.
Currently, Vietnam has seven undersea Internet cables, and Internet service providers are developing more cables to meet increasing demand, Binh informed.
The APG cable spans 10,400 kilometers and runs under the Pacific Ocean. It links Japan with Hong Kong, mainland China, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.
The AAG stretches over 20,000 kilometers and connects Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Guam, Hawaii, and California in the US.
The IA cable spans 6,700 kilometers and links Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Hong Kong. It was put into operation in 2009.
