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| By the end of last year, approximately 685,000 .vn domain names were being maintained nationwide. Hà Nội and HCM City accounted for 63.3 per cent of the total. — Photo chinhsachcuocsong.vnanet.vn |
HÀ NỘI — The national .vn domain provides businesses, household businesses and other economic entities with an official, stable and trusted foundation for establishing their digital presence.
Việt Nam’s e-commerce sector is entering a new phase, with transaction security, consumer trust, long-term digital branding and narrowing the digital divide emerging as key conditions for sustainable growth. In this context, the .vn domain can provide a reliable foundation for businesses and individuals to build an official digital presence.
According to the Vietnam e-Business Index (EBI) Report by the Vietnam E-commerce Association, Việt Nam’s e-commerce market was estimated at US$38.5 billion last year, up nearly tenfold from around $4 billion in 2015.
Experts say the sector is entering a phase of more stable and sustainable development this year, with greater emphasis on consumer protection, export support, reducing environmental impacts and narrowing the digital divide. This shift reflects a move away from rapid expansion towards more stable, sustainable growth.
However, the gap in e-commerce development among localities remains significant, as demonstrated by the EBI. HCM City ranked first with 91.1 points, followed by Hà Nội with 87.5 points, while Đà Nẵng, in third place, scored only 22.3 points. The average score among Việt Nam’s 34 provinces and cities was 15.8 points.
This disparity is also reflected in digital presence. By the end of last year, approximately 685,000 .vn domain names were being maintained nationwide. Hà Nội and HCM City accounted for 63.3 per cent of the total, although they are home to only around 22 per cent of the population.
Hà Nội had around 204,700 domain names, equivalent to roughly one domain for every 43 residents, while HCM City had about one for every 60 residents. By contrast, the mountainous northern provinces of Điện Biên, Sơn La and Lai Châu recorded much lower domain name penetration, with more than 2,000 people per domain in Điện Biên.
Thái Hữu Lý, head of the Service Development Division at the Viet Nam Internet Network Information Center (VNNIC) under the Ministry of Science and Technology, said the figures show that businesses and individuals in different localities have very different capabilities when establishing an official digital presence.
The digital divide is not simply about internet access, but also differences in digital skills and, more importantly, the ability to turn technology into tangible value, he said.
| E-commerce applications and livestreaming help diversify sales channels for Bắc Ninh lychees. — Photo chinhsachcuocsong.vnanet.vn |
Domains as digital business profiles
As selling through e-commerce platforms and social media becomes increasingly common, having a website remains important. The EBI report shows that 46 per cent of surveyed businesses have their own websites for promotional and business activities. Among domain extensions preferred by businesses, .vn ranked first at 50 per cent, followed by .com at 43 per cent.
Notably, 83 per cent of businesses said their primary purpose in building a website was to enhance credibility, promote their business and strengthen their brand, while 70 per cent used websites for advertising, <a href="https://bitcomme.com/canvas-ai-marketing-push-is-running-into-ai-slop-governance/” title=”Canva’s AI marketing push is running into “AI slop” governance”>marketing and introducing products and services.
In a multichannel e-commerce model, marketplaces help businesses sell efficiently and social media helps them reach customers, while their own websites can serve as the anchor for a digital brand. Unlike third-party platforms, businesses’ own websites and domains give them an online space they can maintain independently, allowing them to build up content, brand value and customer relationships over time.
The VNNIC said businesses’ own websites provide an official address for publishing legal information, product details, contact information and sales, warranty and return policies. They also enable businesses to use branded email addresses rather than relying entirely on free accounts or third-party messaging services.
More importantly, a .vn website can serve as the official point of reference across a multichannel ecosystem. Facebook, TikTok, Zalo, online storefronts and QR codes on product packaging can all direct customers to the same website, giving businesses a home address for their digital brand and consumers a reliable point for verifying information.
A .vn website can also function as a digital business profile, bringing together information on product origins, production processes, certifications, QR codes and sales channels. This model can benefit not only larger companies, but also small businesses, household businesses, cooperatives and local producers.
For websites, email and online brands, .vn domains are becoming an important foundation for Vietnamese businesses and individuals to build a more official, independent and sustainable digital presence.
“The value of .vn therefore lies not only in the number of registered domain names, but more importantly, in how many are actually put to use to create value in the digital environment,” said Lý.
“As more businesses establish a presence on the Internet, having an official digital address, a digital brand and a direct communication channel they control will provide an important foundation for Việt Nam’s e-commerce sector to become safer, more trusted and more sustainable.”
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VNNICdigital identitiesdomain namese-commerce platforms
