Demographics and use
The number of internet users in Vietnam has increased to nearly 60 million during the last decade, which is over half of the population. Most of the internet users are between 25 to 34 years old. Vietnamese access the internet daily and most of them spend about three to five hours on average, with a significant share even spending more than nine hours on the internet. Popular activities are video streaming, online gaming, and online shopping.
Video streaming
Video streaming has become more popular in recent years. One third of Vietnamese people know about video streaming services. Besides global player Netflix, there are several domestic video streaming services that have raised awareness among video streamers such as FPT play and VTVCab On. Vietnamese are willing to subscribe to more than one streaming service and would do so if the streaming service provides access to their most favorite shows and movies, as well as exclusive content featuring their favorite celebrities.
Online gaming
The penetration rate for mobile gaming was highest for people between 15 to 24 years old. On average, males spend more time playing mobile games than females. Beside mobile games, PC gaming also accounts for a high share of online gaming. According to a survey, 56.61 percent of Vietnamese respondents stated that their favorite device for online gaming was a desktop. Hence, eSports has gained much popularity in the last few years. For 2021, it was forecasted that the number of eSports fans will reach 9.1 million, up from 2.8 million in 2016.
Online shopping
A high digital penetration has driven the e-commerce market in Vietnam. Although Vietnam is still behind some of its neighboring countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand in terms of e-commerce penetration, online shopping is booming and will continue to do so in the coming years. Consumers were mostly shopping for apparel and cosmetics online, and prefer to pay by cash on delivery or bank transfer.
