TOT-CAT merger to make new firm '3rd biggest service provider, surpassing Dtac'

By THE NATION

 

 

TOT’s merger with CAT Telecom to become one entity called the National Telecom Public Company Limited, or NT Telecom, will be completed on January 7, while the mobile telephone and broadband Internet businesses of the two companies will also be combined into one brand, said Digital Economy and Society (DES) Minister Buddhipongse Punnakanta.

 

“We are planning to rebrand the businesses as either NT Mobile or NT Broadband, which will be officially launched on January 7 as well,” he said.

 

“TOT Mobile has more than 180,000 customers while CAT’s My has 2.5 million customers. When combined they will become a large telecom company. We expect this new company to compete with and eventually surpass the market’s third-biggest player, Total Access Communication [Dtac],” Buddhipongse said.

 

“The brand combination will not affect existing users. Whether you are using TOT or CAT sim cards, the system will automatically match the roaming services and let you continue using your mobile phone and mobile Internet with no interruptions,” he said.

 

“As for broadband service, TOT currently has 1.5 million users while CAT has about 300,000. We aim to bundle broadband packages with a mobile plan to attract new users,” Buddhipongse said.

 

“The combined assets of the two will be worth more than Bt300 billion, including over 25,000 telecom poles nationwide, nine international underwater cable systems, six mobile frequency bands, 4,000km of underground cables, 4 million core kilometres of optical fibre cables, 13 data centres and an international telephone system that is accessible from any number in the world,” he said.

 

“The DES will set policies for NT Telecom to undertake new projects with a focus on 5G and satellite technology,” he added. “You can expect to see some new services by NT Telecom around February-March next year.”

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30400139

 

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-12-24

 

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Aren't these two basically landline phone companies...anyone remember the last time they used a landline?

1 hour ago, Pattaya Spotter said:

Aren't these two basically landline phone companies...anyone remember the last time they used a landline?

Most telecom companies began as landline phone companies decades ago. Some even far earlier, such as Dtac's parent company, Telenor began as a telegraph company in 1855 before the phone was introduced in Norway in 1878.

 

Dtac was founded in 1989. Pretty much before there were anything other than landline phones.

Edited December 24, 20205 yr by HOAX

33 minutes ago, HOAX said:

Most telecom companies began as landline phone companies decades ago. Some even far earlier, such as Dtac's parent company, Telenor began as a telegraph company in 1855 before the phone was introduced in Norway in 1878.

 

Dtac was founded in 1989. Pretty much before there were anything other than landline phones.

Years ago, pre-mobile era, when I first came to Thailand, TOT was know for such slow service (instalation of new landlines) it was called the "Turtlephone Organization of Thailand."

Edited December 24, 20205 yr by Pattaya Spotter

1 minute ago, Pattaya Spotter said:

Years ago, pre-mobile era, when I first came to Thailand, TOT was know for such slow service (instalation of new landlines) it was know as the "Turtlephone Organization of Thailand."

5555 I didn't know that. But not surprising as the telecom and electricity industries in Thailand today aren't exactly known to get things done, if at all, let alone working, as one would expect from a country that consider itself as a 1st world country and a hotspot for the world's wealthiest people.