FPT awarded Myanmar operating licence

Vietnamese ICT and telecoms company FPT says it has become the first wholly foreign-owned firm to be awarded a Network Facilities Services (Individual) licences in Myanmar. Issued by the country’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), the 15-year concession will enable FPT to deploy a national infrastructure, lease access to service providers and provide full telecoms services, such as IPTV, online games, news and e-commerce. TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database notes that Myanmar’s telecoms markets have only recently been freed from state control, with the licensing in 2013 of the first private operators to compete against government-backed entities Myanmar Post and Telecommunication (MPT) and Yatanarpon Teleport (YTP). Earlier this year the MCIT awarded Network Facilities Services (Individual) licences to Shwe Than Lwin Media (30 January), Elite Telecom (27 February) and Yatanarpon Teleport (YTP, 27 February).