How do countries struggle to turn off 2G?

In November 2024, Nguyen Thi Que’s “brick” phone suddenly stopped working. At that time, Vietnamese telecommunications companies were gradually shutting down 2G signals. “I wanted to buy a new phone, but I didn’t have the money,” the 73-year-old woman, who sells iced tea at a bus station in Hanoi, told Rest of World.

Late last year, Vietnam was one of the markets that aggressively cut off 2G signals. Some carriers launched campaigns to give away or subsidize 4G phones to low-income 2G users.

As a result, from 18 million 2G subscribers recorded in January 2024, the number dropped sharply to 143,000 in November of the same year. This put Vietnam in the ranks of those who say no to 2G, alongside Australia, Japan, South Korea, UAE, Brunei, Switzerland, Costa Rica and Jamaica.

According to data from GSMA Intelligence, the research arm of GSMA, a non-profit organization that represents the interests of mobile network operators worldwide, 61 countries from the US, Brazil, South Africa to India and China have planned or initiated the process of shutting down their 2G networks. The goal is to increase bandwidth for 4G and 5G by reusing existing 2G spectrum, which will reduce maintenance costs and boost subscriber and revenue growth.

However, the end of 2G also raises many concerns, especially the impact on the poor. The GSMA's The Mobile Economy 2024 report found that hundreds of millions of people still use 2G phones, making the decision to remove 2G connections complicated.

"If you look at countries like Vietnam, Pakistan, India, where they want to attract investment, having good quality networks (4G, 5G) is very important," said Jeanette Whyte, Asia-Pacific public policy director at GSMA.

Meanwhile, according to market research firm Counterpoint Research, in the period 2019 - 2024, sales of basic phones decreased from 374 million to 200 million units.

A 2021 survey by the Alliance for Affordable Internet also found that around 2.5 billion people worldwide still use basic phones, mostly in Asia and Africa, due to lack of access to smartphones. The cheapest models can still cost up to 30% of their monthly income.

Mike Jensen, a mobile expert at the Association for Advanced Communications, said most telecom regulators around the world are in agreement about phasing out 2G. However, they have not been able to set a timeline due to concerns about the impact on users and temporary disruptions to telecom networks.

In fact, several countries have been pushing back their 2G shutdown plans. In June 2022, South Africa set a target of shutting down 2G and 3G by June 30, 2024, but the plan was later pushed back to March 30, 2025. However, the new deadline is unlikely to be met due to the risk of excluding 20 million subscribers from the mobile network. Many people here are loyal to 2G phones because they are cheap at only $8, while smartphone users also own basic phones as backup devices due to the high rate of robberies.

In Nigeria, the 2G shutdown is scheduled for December this year. Ghana and Egypt are aiming for 2030.

In Vietnam, the solution goes beyond propaganda or selling cheap devices. Carriers even send staff to remote villages to convince people to upgrade to 4G phones for free, while offering preferential packages to subscribers. "Vietnam's success can be attributed to the availability of 4G-enabled feature phones, which has helped bridge the gap in 4G adoption," said Counterpoint Research analyst Shubham Nimkar.

In India, some carriers offer free 4G phones, such as Reliance, which has an internet-enabled JioPhone. According to TechCrunch, Reliance plans to launch a 5G JioPhone this year. However, some experts believe that Reliance’s move is more about business.

According to Counterpoint Research, in India, 2G phones will account for 73% of the 55-60 million feature phones sold in 2024, with the rest being 4G devices.

Some companies are developing platforms for 4G phones to help make devices cheaper. For example, in 2023, Taiwanese company CloudMosa tested Cloud Phone - a technology that allows 4G feature phones to access news and run popular apps like TikTok, Facebook and YouTube. Some devices from HMD and Viettel already run this platform.

CloudMosa founder and CEO Shioupyn Shen said that by the end of 2024, there will be more than one million Cloud Phone-enabled devices in the market worldwide. The company aims to grow to 200 million devices in the next two years.

“If governments, telcos and the tech industry work together, plans can be made more feasible and accelerated,” Brian Mahlangu, vice president of product at South African bank Absa, told Finextra. “With measures like affordable devices, the transition can be accelerated. The core of this transition is not just about technological advancement, it has to be beneficial to users.”

The plan to turn off 2G waves in Vietnam has been prepared for a long time, including measures such as stopping the import of 2G Only devices from 2021, not allowing the import of new networks with 2G phones without a certificate of conformity.

According to the Telecommunications Department, stopping 2G will promote the use of 4G, bringing people to the digital environment, enjoying advanced services such as electronic payments and online public services, thereby promoting digital transformation.