Skip to content
View in the app

A better way to browse. Learn more.

Thailand News and Discussion Forum | ASEANNOW

A full-screen app on your home screen with push notifications, badges and more.

To install this app on iOS and iPadOS
  1. Tap the Share icon in Safari
  2. Scroll the menu and tap Add to Home Screen.
  3. Tap Add in the top-right corner.
To install this app on Android
  1. Tap the 3-dot menu (⋮) in the top-right corner of the browser.
  2. Tap Add to Home screen or Install app.
  3. Confirm by tapping Install.

Troubled Elite Card Must Raise Fees To Be Viable, Says Study

Featured Replies

http://www.bangkokpost.com/Business/25May2007_biz37.php

Higher fees and better management are needed if the Elite Card programme for affluent foreign tourists and executives is to succeed, its operators have been told.

The conclusions are contained in a study done by Thammasat University for state-owned Thailand Privilege Card Co (TPC), which has struggled to find members since its inception three years ago.

Some valuable incentives should be reduced to cut costs, according to Tatre Jantarakolica, an academic with the university's Economic Research Training Centre (ERTC), who conducted the study.

If the lifetime membership fee was increased to 1.8 million baht, he said, TPC could make 13 billion baht by the 15th year of operation, based on 10,000 members. Profits could jump to more than 20 billion baht in the 20th year if membership reached 20,000, the upper limit set by the interim government.

The study is part of TPC's plan to reform the Elite Card programme after it failed to achieve the target set earlier.

The programme was created by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in order to boost tourism revenue. The scheme has fallen far short of expectations and is proving expensive for the government.

The programme offers card holders a wide range of perks, including preferential visas and fast-track immigration clearance, access to concierge and call-centre facilities and discounts at many tourist venues, including hotels, golf clubs and spas.

Its original plan was to attract as many as one million cardholders by 2008 but currently it has only about 2,000 members from 49 countries.

Mr Tatre said that if the number of members did not grow beyond the current 2,000, TPC would face costs as high as six billion baht providing the high-end services each member is expected to use, estimated at nearly 250,000 baht per member per year, over 30 years.

He said the lifetime membership fee of only one million baht was a bargain when compared with the perks on offer.

:o

" Higher fees are needed if the Elite Card programme for affluent foreign tourists and executives is to succeed, its operators have been told.

I am speechless :o

The Thai Michael Moore should do a documentary on this whole elite card joint, from "bright idea" from Thaksin to the barrel of laughs it is today! You really couldn't make this stuff up.

Create an account or sign in to comment

Recently Browsing 0

  • No registered users viewing this page.

Account

Navigation

Search

Search

Configure browser push notifications

Chrome (Android)
  1. Tap the lock icon next to the address bar.
  2. Tap Permissions → Notifications.
  3. Adjust your preference.
Chrome (Desktop)
  1. Click the padlock icon in the address bar.
  2. Select Site settings.
  3. Find Notifications and adjust your preference.