Hanoi Times – A Singapore-based internet telephony company has begun the first o­nline telephone advertising service in Vietnam.

One Connection Internet Inc (OCI), which holds 50% of internet telephony market share with 600,000 permanent customers, calls its new service Live Screen or Quick Look.

"No o­ne can deny that the internet is the essence of life," Hansjoerg C Wagner, Vice Chairman of Singapore-based OCI, said at a press conference o­n Tuesday.

"It changes the way of communication, working and even advertising," he added.

The boom in internet services in recent years has led to more advertising money being poured o­nline instead of the traditional venues of television, radio or newspapers.

Wagner said that next year o­nline advertising would surpass that of radio and television, and become competitive with newspapers.

He said more people in Vietnam were spending time o­nline and internet subscriptions were growing.

OCI predicts local advertising o­n the internet would increase by 50% this year and reach VND 600 billion (US$ 37.5 million) five years later.

While o­nline advertising revenue in Vietnam in 2006 was VND 64 billion (US$ 4 million), in the future o­nline advertising would enjoy a 100% increase and earn VND 500 billion (US$ 31.2 million) by 2010, OCI said.