noitom

If you substitute "Thai politics and blatant corruption" for the newspaper's characterization of durian, it works well:

"The spiky Thai politics and blatant corruption has long been known for its penetrating and pungent odour and is offensive to those who do not have an acquired taste for it."

The mid section of the police officer in uniform facing the photographer looks like he's been indulging on extra portions of complimentary crispy pork and sweet sticky rice and mango.

A tip off, a Nigerian, one and a half keys of heroin, Pakistani involvement. All the makings of top Thai news. No Thais involved! That's the big story. Thais are rarely if ever involved in this low life, bottom feeding, drug trade activity. If they do find a random Thai, it's small quantities, it's a mule, never a Mr. Big, and the story disappears quickly. This was a disappointing arrest for Thai police since no "cash" was involved.

Great news! This will lift the spirits of everyone.

Whatever happened to that case of the PM Yingluck's minister Nalinee Taveesin? She was the one indicated by various sources and messages to and from the US Ambassador to Zimbabwe as being heavily involved in assisting Robert Mgabe of laundering blood diamonds while on visits to Thailand. http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Blacklisted+Robert+Mugabe+crony+named+Thai+cabinet/6071536/story.html

When The Nation was doing news on this, it was interesting to follow. Then it just dropped. Why would the newspaper just drop a story like this without further investigation to clarify? What is the status of the "blacklisting" of this Thai government minister?

Congratulations to this student team. In spite of the shortcomings of the Thai educational system, they've been able to excel in their field of interest.

This is a preposterous scheme to squander legitimate Thai taxpayer money. How does this economically and socially benefit the majority of the Thai population? Or even better, who is the secretive beneficiary constituencies? Is it northern drug trade? Is it Thai and other airlines operating the Chang Mai/BKK route? Where is the newspaper's responsibility to investigate and report on this project?

Could be suicide or drugs. Media is managed to minimize reporting of suicides due to copycat suicide factor.

So the "dirty tricks" are?

Thailand is innocent! This is a preposterous notion. No one comes back to Queensland with Aids acquired from unprotected sex in Thailand.

Thailand denies the allegations and resents the allegator.

This looks suspiciously like a small subset with altered statistics of an earlier Bloomberg article with a much more comprehensive and informed perspective.

It's astonishing that the Japanese and Thomson Reuters couldn't swing a big enough you know what to "motivate" the Thais to get to the bottom of this right away.

The Science and Technology Minister speaks - everyone should listen! He is sure to be correct because he is who he is.

Thailand - The malarial swamp.

Boy o Boy!! The Thais did again!! They fooled everyone. How clever. Brilliant! Those Thais!! Aren't they something else? Wow!!

@ Nisa - Suggest that you bone up on the business issues. Thailand has no 3G that works let alone 4G and is very far away from an implementation of 3G, at the least necessary to leverage a Facebook commercial implementation. Second, the big kicker in Thailand would be selling advertising to companies who have enabled apps (applications) on smart 3G or 4G phones. Companies would be interested in Facebook's ability, like Google's to pinpoint location and deliver just in time advertising offers through the companies app and get them "stuck" on the app, for example Starbucks. For additional example illustrations a Trader Joe, a Target, an Ikea, a Costco..etc or some other such enterprise like a Home Pro in Thailand.

Most of Non-farm Thailand is either manufacturing or hospitality (including - sex trade both for foreign sex tourism domestic sex trade which dwarfs the foreign sex business). Facebook has limited interest in focusing on the manufacturing sector in Thailand since they mostly sell internationally and through dealers. It would also be doubtful that the sex trade is of much future interest. Non-sex hospitality would be a limited advertiser paid market with apps running on Facebook. remember, FB's strategy is to get advertisers to "run the app" and therefore own the relationship. Thai based industry is unlikely to represent a significant market for implementing Facebook advertiser's apps. Red Bull , Chang, Singha, Thai Air, and CP would be fairly good examples of Thai companies who might have the scale and budget to run a Facebook secure app for mobile and desktop users.

Red Bull's market in Thailand doesn't strike me as worth it for them to pursue since they don't sell the international formula of Red Bull and contribute very little to overall Red Bull revenue. Chang and Singha might make it work, but their products don't really make an incremental gain with a FB app. Thai Air is so inept and bureaucratic that they would need 6 months of consulting from McKinsey to even understand the whole idea, and then forget about implementation. CP, well that might be a good case. Bangkok Bank or another bank may be another, but have you ever explored their technology for on line banking?

Read the enclosed article http://www.reuters.c...E84G0JQ20120517 as a starrting point and see that the user sign ons is dropping off significantly and they have given up hopes for India as they also lack a 3G network. India by the way, has a much more robust and numerous real consumer base than Thailand. India also doen't have the vast black market pirated goods trade that is huge in Thailand and much of the goods around in malls is third run defects and copies. The article doesn't even reference Thailand. Top name brand stores in Thailand like Gucci, Fendi, Zegna ..etc. don't usually pay rent in large upscale malls like Paragon - they get a bye as a draw for traffic and just pay a commission to the landlord on any sales.

Thailand is not regarded as a "walking" or easy drive by market and therefore much of FB's strategy to target these customers doesn't appear relavent. Internet connection in most Thai residential and wireless end points is too slow or not secure. Apart from the technology issues, Thailand is just not an economic market for monetized commercial Facebook. They still haven't decoded that completely in the US, Europe and Japan let alone a fragile , limited state like Thailand.

Again, you miss the mark including on why Thailand and Asia add so much value to its worth. Thailand has the 16th most Facebook users of any country with a penetration level that rates over 100th. Not only is it already a huge market taking advantage of by advertisers but also has an even huger potential given the continued rapid growth of internet users here. You can go on and on with doom and gloom but kind of hard to argue with facts. Asia, including Thailand, is HUGELY important to Facebook right now and a huge reason for its value because it is seen as where the biggest growth will come from in the coming years since much of the west has already hit its peak in terms of users.

Facebook Growth Fueled by Asian Countries

http://www.cmswire.c...ions-015670.php

Asia helps drive Facebook's 1-billion goal

http://www.gmanetwor...-1-billion-goal

Analysis: Facebook can't take Asian growth for granted

http://www.reuters.c...E84G0JQ20120517

Bangkok is Top Town for Facebookers, as Asia Fuels Growth

http://pandodaily.co...a-fuels-growth/

How Asia is powering Facebook's growth

http://articles.time...cial-networking

Facebook's Prospects In Asia

http://seekingalpha....ospects-in-asia

Facebook's Amazing Growth in the Developing World

http://www.theatlant...g-world/257392/

Why facebook fans are worth more to you (chart)

http://webstrategy.a...re-to-you-chart

1 Million Facebook Fans = $3.6 Million In Media Value

http://www.techinasi...in-media-value/

I don't know why you would cite this Reuters article - it is not favorable to Thailand at all, and in fact raises serious concerns. It looks like you may have taken a headline and not actually read the article. http://www.reuters.c...E84G0JQ20120517

Thailand doesn't yet have adequate 3G and is very far away from 4G, the network backbone needed to really leverage the power of Facebook and monetizing it. Thailand users spend little time on Facebook even though they signed up for an account. Loo at it from the point of view as to how Facebook will own the relationship with the corporate user not the end user. It will own the end user by getting the corporate user to implement a mobile app and keep "their" customers on "their" implementation of Facebook enterprise and not on a web based browser using Google for search and SEO. Most of the ads that you see on your desktop Facebook are actually Google ads. Facebook gets a very small part of that revenue. Actually, although Thailand has 16 million registered accounts, it produces miniscule revenue for Facebook. Sorry you don't get the basic fundamentals. Keep showing up, you'll get there.

By the way, the Thailand monetized element of Facebook's IPO is non existent in the big scheme of things. Thailand was essentially insignificant as part of the IPO valuation or the company's fundamental valuation.

@ Nisa - Suggest that you bone up on the business issues. Thailand has no 3G that works let alone 4G and is very far away from an implementation of 3G, at the least necessary to leverage a Facebook commercial implementation. Second, the big kicker in Thailand would be selling advertising to companies who have enabled apps (applications) on smart 3G or 4G phones. Companies would be interested in Facebook's ability, like Google's to pinpoint location and deliver just in time advertising offers through the companies app and get them "stuck" on the app, for example Starbucks. For additional example illustrations a Trader Joe, a Target, an Ikea, a Costco..etc or some other such enterprise like a Home Pro in Thailand.

Most of Non-farm Thailand is either manufacturing or hospitality (including - sex trade both for foreign sex tourism domestic sex trade which dwarfs the foreign sex business). Facebook has limited interest in focusing on the manufacturing sector in Thailand since they mostly sell internationally and through dealers. It would also be doubtful that the sex trade is of much future interest. Non-sex hospitality would be a limited advertiser paid market with apps running on Facebook. remember, FB's strategy is to get advertisers to "run the app" and therefore own the relationship. Thai based industry is unlikely to represent a significant market for implementing Facebook advertiser's apps. Red Bull , Chang, Singha, Thai Air, and CP would be fairly good examples of Thai companies who might have the scale and budget to run a Facebook secure app for mobile and desktop users.

Red Bull's market in Thailand doesn't strike me as worth it for them to pursue since they don't sell the international formula of Red Bull and contribute very little to overall Red Bull revenue. Chang and Singha might make it work, but their products don't really make an incremental gain with a FB app. Thai Air is so inept and bureaucratic that they would need 6 months of consulting from McKinsey to even understand the whole idea, and then forget about implementation. CP, well that might be a good case. Bangkok Bank or another bank may be another, but have you ever explored their technology for on line banking?

Read the enclosed article http://www.reuters.c...E84G0JQ20120517 as a starrting point and see that the user sign ons is dropping off significantly and they have given up hopes for India as they also lack a 3G network. India by the way, has a much more robust and numerous real consumer base than Thailand. India also doen't have the vast black market pirated goods trade that is huge in Thailand and much of the goods around in malls is third run defects and copies. The article doesn't even reference Thailand. Top name brand stores in Thailand like Gucci, Fendi, Zegna ..etc. don't usually pay rent in large upscale malls like Paragon - they get a bye as a draw for traffic and just pay a commission to the landlord on any sales.

Thailand is not regarded as a "walking" or easy drive by market and therefore much of FB's strategy to target these customers doesn't appear relavent. Internet connection in most Thai residential and wireless end points is too slow or not secure. Apart from the technology issues, Thailand is just not an economic market for monetized commercial Facebook. They still haven't decoded that completely in the US, Europe and Japan let alone a fragile , limited state like Thailand.

Again, you miss the mark including on why Thailand and Asia add so much value to its worth. Thailand has the 16th most Facebook users of any country with a penetration level that rates over 100th. Not only is it already a huge market taking advantage of by advertisers but also has an even huger potential given the continued rapid growth of internet users here. You can go on and on with doom and gloom but kind of hard to argue with facts. Asia, including Thailand, is HUGELY important to Facebook right now and a huge reason for its value because it is seen as where the biggest growth will come from in the coming years since much of the west has already hit its peak in terms of users.

Facebook Growth Fueled by Asian Countries

http://www.cmswire.c...ions-015670.php

Asia helps drive Facebook's 1-billion goal

http://www.gmanetwor...-1-billion-goal

Analysis: Facebook can't take Asian growth for granted

http://www.reuters.c...E84G0JQ20120517

Bangkok is Top Town for Facebookers, as Asia Fuels Growth

http://pandodaily.co...a-fuels-growth/

How Asia is powering Facebook's growth

http://articles.time...cial-networking

Facebook's Prospects In Asia

http://seekingalpha....ospects-in-asia

Facebook's Amazing Growth in the Developing World

http://www.theatlant...g-world/257392/

Why facebook fans are worth more to you (chart)

http://webstrategy.a...re-to-you-chart

1 Million Facebook Fans = $3.6 Million In Media Value

http://www.techinasi...in-media-value/

I don't know why you would cite this Reuters article - it is not favorable to Thailand at all, and in fact raises serious concerns. It looks like you may have taken a headline and not actually read the article. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/17/us-facebook-asia-idUSBRE84G0JQ20120517

Thailand doesn't yet have adequate 3G and is very far away from 4G, the network backbone needed to really leverage the power of Facebook and monetizing it. Thailand users spend little time on Facebook even though they signed up for an account. Loo at it from the point of view as to how Facebook will own the relationship with the corporate user not the end user. It will own the end user by getting the corporate user to implement a mobile app and keep "their" customers on "their" implementation of Facebook enterprise and not on a web based browser using Google for search and SEO. Most of the ads that you see on your desktop Facebook are actually Google ads. Facebook gets a very small part of that revenue. Actually, although Thailand has 16 million registered accounts, it produces miniscule revenue for Facebook. Sorry you don't get the basic fundamentals. Keep showing up, you'll get there.

@ Nisa - Suggest that you bone up on the business issues. Thailand has no 3G that works let alone 4G and is very far away from an implementation of 3G, at the least necessary to leverage a Facebook commercial implementation. Second, the big kicker in Thailand would be selling advertising to companies who have enabled apps (applications) on smart 3G or 4G phones. Companies would be interested in Facebook's ability, like Google's to pinpoint location and deliver just in time advertising offers through the companies app and get them "stuck" on the app, for example Starbucks. For additional example illustrations a Trader Joe, a Target, an Ikea, a Costco..etc or some other such enterprise like a Home Pro in Thailand.

Most of Non-farm Thailand is either manufacturing or hospitality (including - sex trade both for foreign sex tourism domestic sex trade which dwarfs the foreign sex business). Facebook has limited interest in focusing on the manufacturing sector in Thailand since they mostly sell internationally and through dealers. It would also be doubtful that the sex trade is of much future interest. Non-sex hospitality would be a limited advertiser paid market with apps running on Facebook. remember, FB's strategy is to get advertisers to "run the app" and therefore own the relationship. Thai based industry is unlikely to represent a significant market for implementing Facebook advertiser's apps. Red Bull , Chang, Singha, Thai Air, and CP would be fairly good examples of Thai companies who might have the scale and budget to run a Facebook secure app for mobile and desktop users.

Red Bull's market in Thailand doesn't strike me as worth it for them to pursue since they don't sell the international formula of Red Bull and contribute very little to overall Red Bull revenue. Chang and Singha might make it work, but their products don't really make an incremental gain with a FB app. Thai Air is so inept and bureaucratic that they would need 6 months of consulting from McKinsey to even understand the whole idea, and then forget about implementation. CP, well that might be a good case. Bangkok Bank or another bank may be another, but have you ever explored their technology for on line banking?

Read the enclosed article http://www.reuters.c...E84G0JQ20120517 as a starrting point and see that the user sign ons is dropping off significantly and they have given up hopes for India as they also lack a 3G network. India by the way, has a much more robust and numerous real consumer base than Thailand. India also doen't have the vast black market pirated goods trade that is huge in Thailand and much of the goods around in malls is third run defects and copies. The article doesn't even reference Thailand. Top name brand stores in Thailand like Gucci, Fendi, Zegna ..etc. don't usually pay rent in large upscale malls like Paragon - they get a bye as a draw for traffic and just pay a commission to the landlord on any sales.

Thailand is not regarded as a "walking" or easy drive by market and therefore much of FB's strategy to target these customers doesn't appear relavent. Internet connection in most Thai residential and wireless end points is too slow or not secure. Apart from the technology issues, Thailand is just not an economic market for monetized commercial Facebook. They still haven't decoded that completely in the US, Europe and Japan let alone a fragile , limited state like Thailand.

My Thai wife now has her Facebook shares. So she hopes that the explosive growth of Thai users like her does in fact "line her pockets" as well as Zuckerberg and Saverin, proportionately of course.

I hope you/she paid close to 39 dollars.

We paid 38.02 actually - I bought them when they dipped down around 11 and it was obvious that the underwriters were in buying to keep that level. At the ned of the day we thought they might fall lower, but again the underwriters bought the market, but it my go down. Anyway she is a happy camper - she had a choice of FB shares or their equivalent in GLD.

China is a key market for Thai expertise in sex tourism. China's male population exceeds 56% of the population according to sources as the result of one family one child and preferencing female births.

Thais need to cater to Chinese tourists and assure that this cash flow cow sustains. They need to enforce that working girls, touts, pimps, and others involved in the "trade" do not cheat valuable Chinese tourists.

This is great news!! What about the civil action and criminal followup on the owners? Remember, they exceeded legal crowd limits, stage show fire was not secure, and exit doors were chained from the inside.

So they can't validate ID cards, how will they validate a citizen's authorization to vote and vote once?

Another example of how corruption throughout society and a breakdown of the state's management of law and rule of law leads to continued growth of crime and geometric increase in the numbers of participants. When gangsters and criminal know that they can buy their way out there is no barrier.

Still no Mr. Bigs arrested up the food chain. This is laughable.

The one year in prison and the 2,000 baht fine is quite preposterous and shocking. No further info on the Thai Tawainese man who did the deal. He too should be in the news and his Mr. Bigs. But with The Nation's professional investigative journalism, it's for sure that this will be followed up on.