3G News & Developments

[lomatopo]

Analyst report: True

True Corporation (TRUE)

TRUE - CAT 3G to be finalised soon

Problems are easing, after the Attorney- General confirmed that the new

TRUE – CAT contract was legal. The importation of 3G equipment and the

new license from the NBTC seem to be moving smoothly after the NBTC

adjusted the permit process. Therefore, TRUE is expected to achieve a 3G

start up as planned in August. The current share price has a 14% upside

with a fair value of Bt4.28. We are maintaining our speculative Buy call.

♦ 3G TRUE-CAT objections are easing

The regulatory problems for the TRUE 3G service start up have gotten better.

Early this week, the Attorney- General reported to the ICT Ministry that the

TRUE- CAT contracts are not against the Joint Venture Act and not against

NBTC regulations on wholesale and retail services, and leasing

telecommunication equipment. Yesterday (13 July), the National Broadcasting

and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) stated that the Board approved

the telecommunications license revisions to become an automatic function

without board consideration to shorten the license process from one month to

three days. The revised act will be published as law in Government Gazette later

this month.

♦ Highly likely start up of 3G services in 3Q11

After the Attorney- General approval of the TRUE - CAT 3G contracts, we see

less risk in legal issues. Furthermore, after the NBTC simplification of the license

process to just 3 days, the CAT (TRUE partner for 3G services) will have a

license to import 3G equipment, to possess it and to use the 3G base stations

shortly and this will benefit the TRUE ability to install the 3G equipment as per

contract to start 3G services in BKK and the suburbs, according to plan.

more...

[lomatopo]

3G battle set to begin as real move and CAT are poised to launch service

By Usanee Mongkolporn

The Nation

Published on July 18, 2011

The 3G-service battle looks set to intensify as Real Move and its 3G partner CAT Telecom are expected to announce the launches of commercial 3G services today and Wednesday, respectively.

Advanced Info Service (AIS) is also expected to fully launch 3G-900 MHz services this month.

After the official launch of |Real Move's services, TrueMove |will stop providing 3G services to |its customers as these will be replaced by those of Real Move.

The launch stems from deals between CAT and True Corp's subsidiaries, Real Move and Real Future, to jointly provide 3G services. CAT will wholesale its 3G capacity for Real Move to provide services for 14.5 years at a spectrum of 800 MHz. CAT will also resell services, mainly to corporate customers.

more...

[lomatopo]

AIS eager to use TOT 3G

Published: 18/07/2011 at 12:00 AM

Newspaper section: Business

Advanced Info Service appears to be gaining momentum to win a major deal to help TOT Plc expand its 3G wireless broadband service, as the country's largest mobile operator is offering the state telecom enterprise four times higher returns than rivals.

AIS and Samart Corporation are the two main contenders to win the deal to provide 3G service under the mobile virtual network operators (MVNO) model. They aim to secure 40% of TOT's 3G network capacity under a 10-year strategic partner contract.

Wichian Mektrakarn, AIS's chief executive, said the company aimed to provide 3G service on behalf of TOT as it sees higher returns than operating its own 3G service on the 900-Megahertz frequency under the concession system.

An MVNO is a mobile operator that does not own its own spectrum and usually does not have its own network infrastructure.

A TOT board director, who asked not to be named, said AIS had offered to pay it as much as 40% of revenue share plus other unconditional benefits if the company is selected as a strategic MVNO.

more...

[lomatopo]

This article.analyst report has a fair amount of detail, albeit depressing re: NTBC/2100 Mhz 3G licensing. Key takeaway, licenses may not be issued until Q42012...

"We are 80% confident that the NBTC will award 3G/2.1GHz licences in 4Q12."

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2011/07/19/business/Telecommunications-sector-30160619.html

[lomatopo]

Soft launch today of CAT's 3G service

By Usanee Mongkolporn

The Nation

Published on July 20, 2011

CAT Telecom will soft-launch its commercial 3G service today and use the My brand. Now CAT has 1,000 subscribers to its third-generation wireless broadband service, who are its employees. It will migrate the 400,000 subscribers of its existing cellular service to 3G over two years. The move follows its deals signed with True Corp subsidiaries Real Move and Real Future in January to develop the 3G service nationwide.

CAT will wholesale and resell the 3G service. Real Move has leased 3G capacity from CAT to resell the service. Real Move yesterday formally kicked off its 3G service under the TrueMove H brand with three service packages. Real Move has gradually switched about 800,000 subscribers of the Hutchison-CAT Wireless Multimedia's CDMA (code division multiple access) cellular service to its 3G |service, starting with heavy data users. Under CAT's 3G network plan, 671 base stations were to be set up by last month, with the capacity to serve 700,000 |customers and cover 13 per |cent of the population. Next month, it plans to increase the base stations to 2,763 to serve up to 2.5 million customers and 29 per cent of the population. By December it will have 5,326 stations capable of serving 5 million customers and reaching 70 per cent of the population.

more...

Note that Truemove had a planned and announced service outage 19 July 00:01 - 05:00, presumably as part of this launch?

Edited July 20, 2011 by lomatopo

[lomatopo]

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

AIS rolls out 3G coverage for Phuket

EXCLUSIVE: Some AIS users may have recently noticed the "3G" logo on their phone. Full services are expected to be available by the end of the month.

PHUKET: AIS is currently rolling out Phuket’s first island-wide full 3G service with a target launch date slated for the end of the month, the Phuket Gazette has learned.

The news follows a ground-breaking demonstration of the service by Paiboon Rinsakul, AIS Marketing and Sales Manager for Upper Southern Thailand, at the Woody Leonhard Computer Clinic held in Chalong on Sunday. Mr Paiboon demonstrated AIS’s new HSPA 3G service, with full internet access over AIS’s about-to-be-released wireless network. In front of 50 observers at the meeting, Mr Paiboon ran the group’s standard international speed test to Los Angeles (www.phuketinternetspeed.com). The speed test delivered a return of 1.8 Mbps download speed – by far the fastest wireless internet the group has ever seen, reported Mr Leonhard. “By comparison, most wired connections in Phuket are running at 0.6 to 1.3 Mbps, meaning that the wireless AIS 3G service, right now, is faster than most wired ADSL connections. “It’s also faster than most 3G connections in the US and Europe,” he added. Mr Paiboon revealed that AIS will roll out HSPA 3G to towers covering about 95 per cent of the internet usage areas on the island. The 3G service will be available to postpaid GSM and prepaid 1-2 Call, Mr Paiboon said. “Full details, including pricing, have yet to be finalized, but AIS will probably offer several levels of service,” he added.

[lomatopo]

DTAC 3G service to go commercial next month

By Usanee Mongkolporn

The Nation

Published on July 22, 2011

Total Access Communication (DTAC) will commercially launch its 3Gwireless broadband service in Bangkok in mid-August, with a plan to invest another Bt750 million next year to increase the number of 3G base stations to 2,000 aimed at expanding total coverage to 40 provinces.

However, it remains to be seen whether its proposed launch next month will put it on a collision course with concession owner CAT Telecom and the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).

DTAC chief executive officer Jon Eddy Abdullah said yesterday that his telecom was ready to launch the billable service on the 850-megahertz spectrum in August. The launch will be based on the NTC permit DTAC secured in June to install and use 3G equipment to provide the service under CAT's concession.

DTAC got the NTC permit last month to install and use 240 3G base stations, and the permit to use an additional 3G base stations is expected next week. It has informed CAT about the planned launch.

more...

[Redux7]

Is anyone else spotting 3G coverage more frequently.

I am with Ais and for the past month I have been spotting 3G coverage at Nana BTS station.

Also in that general area. Its spoty at best but more than I can speak of previously.

Is this part of the TOT roll out plan?

Can anybody else attest to that. ?

[lomatopo]

Is anyone else spotting 3G coverage more frequently.

I am with Ais and for the past month I have been spotting 3G coverage at Nana BTS station.

Also in that general area. Its spoty at best but more than I can speak of previously.

Is this part of the TOT roll out plan?

Can anybody else attest to that. ?

Your query is answered in several articles posted on this page...

Somchai Lertsutiwong, AIS executive vice president for marketing, said yesterday that the roaming facility with TOT network was just to complement AIS's existing 3G service, using the 900-megahertz spectrum. AIS will fully promote 3G-900MHz service when it finishes establishing 1,884 base stations for it nationwide. Currently, there are only a few such base stations in some major provinces.

So AIS (apparently) had already installed (perhaps in anticipation of the election winner?) a lot of 3G 900 Mhz base-stations in metro-Bangkok, and Phuket (and other areas as well), and are just turning up the service. It is independent of the TOT roaming agreement. When you are outside of the 900 Mhz 3G service you would roam onto TOT's network. They might send you an SMS once the service if more widely available, then you could subscribe to a 3G data plan? What make/model phone do you have?

[lomatopo]

CAT puts brakes on DTAC 3G launch

By Usanee Mongkolporn

The Nation

Published on July 23, 2011

CAT Telecom chief executive officer Jirayuth Rungsrithong said the agency would advise Total Access Communication (DTAC) to wait for a reply from the Office of the Attorney-General before launching commercial third-generation services. He added that DTAC's clinching of a permit last month from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to install and use a 3G wireless broadband network did not mean DTAC could go ahead with its stated plan to launch it in August. The cellular operator needs to wait for the Office of the Attorney-General to inform CAT if DTAC can launch 3G commercial services under a CAT concession, he said. A source from DTAC complained that CAT had kept the firm waiting for more than two years for the nod to launch 3G commercial services. The source added that if the OAG gave DTAC the okay, CAT might try to delay the plan further. CAT has allowed DTAC to launch 3G services on a trial basis. Advanced Info Service is expected to launch commercial 3G services next week, while CAT soft-launched its own commercial 3G services this week.

On Thursday, DTAC announced that it would commercially launch 3G wireless broadband services in Bangkok in mid-August. The launch will be based on an NTC permit. DTAC has earmarked Bt1.2 billion for the two-phase network upgrade this year using 1,220 base stations. It has completed the initial upgrade in Bangkok of 400 stations at a cost of Bt350 million. The addition of 800 more sites to cover all of Bangkok and 20 other provinces is expected to be completed this year. DTAC also plans to increase the number of 3G base stations to 2,000 in 2012, which will cost Bt750 million for an additional 780 base stations in 40 provinces. If its board approves this third phase, it is expected to start in the first quarter of next year.

[Redux7]

Thank you for your response. I now see all the related article. This is great news. Hope that the network will be a stable one. I also noticed that all along Sukhumvit there is 3G+.

I am using a windows phone Samsung Omnia 7. My mom while on vacation here was displaying H in Hua Hin on the Ais network. She was using a HTC HD7.

Somchai Lertsutiwong, AIS executive vice president for marketing, said yesterday that the roaming facility with TOT network was just to complement AIS's existing 3G service, using the 900-megahertz spectrum. AIS will fully promote 3G-900MHz service when it finishes establishing 1,884 base stations for it nationwide. Currently, there are only a few such base stations in some major provinces.

So AIS (apparently) had already installed (perhaps in anticipation of the election winner?) a lot of 3G 900 Mhz base-stations in metro-Bangkok, and Phuket (and other areas as well), and are just turning up the service. It is independent of the TOT roaming agreement. When you are outside of the 900 Mhz 3G service you would roam onto TOT's network. They might send you an SMS once the service if more widely available, then you could subscribe to a 3G data plan? What make/model phone do you have?

[Crushdepth]

This article.analyst report has a fair amount of detail, albeit depressing re: NTBC/2100 Mhz 3G licensing. Key takeaway, licenses may not be issued until Q42012...

"We are 80% confident that the NBTC will award 3G/2.1GHz licences in 4Q12."

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2011/07/19/business/Telecommunications-sector-30160619.html

I've literally gone grey waiting for to happen.

[lomatopo]

Loxley and FTTX seek 3G capacity deals with CAT

By Usanee Mongkolporn

The Nation

Published on July 27, 2011

Loxley and AirAsia subsidiary FTTX have approached CAT Telecom about possible deals to lease its third-generation wireless broadband capacity to provide the service on a retail basis.

CAT chief executive officer Jirayuth Rungsrithong yesterday said the state agency would grant the deals if the companies could accept the condition that they lease capacity on a long-term contract of 14 years.

The other key condition is that the 3G bandwidth capacity they lease in the following years must not be lower than the amount they lease from CAT in the first year of the deal.

These requirements have been drawn up to guarantee that CAT gains substantial revenue from wholesaling the capacity, he said.

CAT has already leased its 3G capacity to True Corp's Real Move for 14 and a half years for the provision of retail service nationwide.

Jirayuth added that CAT had opened the service for resale partners, which can lease 3G capacity from TOT and CAT at the same time.

more...

[lomatopo]

AIS to launch commercial 3G services tomorrow (28 July 2011) on 1,884 base-stations.

Link to TV thread

[lomatopo]

AIS kicks off 3G in Bangkok, 7 provinces

By USANEE MONGKOLPORN

THE NATION

Published on July 29, 2011

Advanced Info Service (AIS) will start roaming its customers on TOT's third-generation network for wireless broadband service on October 7.

AIS chief executive officer Wichian Mektakarn said yesterday that this deal would enable the company to expand its 3G service offerings quickly.

AIS signed the deal with TOT initially to allow its 60,000 customers to access TOT's existing 3G network in Greater Bangkok and upcoming nationwide network for data services. A maximum of 1 million AIS customers will be allowed to roam on the networks in one year.

AIS expects significant growth in data revenue this year, after the full launch of its 3G wireless broadband service yesterday and a host of content and applications. However, Wichian declined to specify the estimated revenue growth.

AIS debuted the full launch of its 3G service in Bangkok and seven other major provinces, namely Chiang Mai, Chon Buri, Songkhla (Hat Yai), Phuket, southern Phetchaburi and northern Prachuap Khiri Khan (Cha-am-Hua Hin-Pranburi), and Nakhon Ratchasima.

The launch followed expansion of its 3G base stations to 1,884 in these provinces, up from about 100 bases a few years ago. Maximum connection speed is 21.6 megabits per second.

more...

-----------

AIS goes 3G in spite of legal jams

Advanced Info Service, the country's largest mobile operator, has started commercial 3G wireless broadband services as part of its 10-billion-baht network expansion this year.

Published: 29/07/2011 at 12:00 AM

Mr Wichian is flanked by Somchai Lertsutiwong (left), executive vice-president for marketing, and Thitipong Kiewpaisal, vice-president for marketing, at yesterday’s launch, where the company also introduced the AIS Bookstore application for the Apple iPad.

The 3G services - running on HSPA, Edge plus and WiFi systems - will be available initially in Bangkok and nine major areas: Chiang Mai, Chon Buri, Hat Yai in Songkhla, Phuket, Cha-am in Phetchaburi, Hua Hin and Pranburi in Prachuap Khiri Khan, Nakhon Ratchasima, Chiang Rai and Nakhon Pathom.

Although AIS and second-ranked DTAC offer commercial 3G service by upgrading their existing 2G technologies to 3G high-speed packet access (HSPA), questions remain about the legality of doing so under their existing concessions granted by the state telecom enterprises.

Some lawyers maintain that operators would be breaching their existing concessions, which permit them to offer only 2G digital cellular service

more...

Other links:

http://naiaobaoon.wordpress.com/2011/07/28/ais-3g-package/ note fair-use policy

http://www.ais.co.th/mobileinternet/3g/ top/main page

http://www.ais.co.th/mobileinternet/3g/coverage/ coverage maps

http://www.ais.co.th/mobileinternet/3g/package/ click on device to see device-specific plans

http://www.ais.co.th/mobileinternet/3g/handset/ settings

[lomatopo]

True Analyst Report

Launching 3G will drive revenue

Even with an estimated loss for 2Q11 of -Bt394mn, this result will be better than 2Q10 from higher subscriber numbers and more I-phone sales. We expect a recovery in 3Q11 after the low season of 2Q11 and the start up of 3G services in some areas last week. We expect these events to drive revenue in the future. However the current share price is close to our fair value and we have thus downgraded our recommendation from Speculative Buy to HOLD.

Lower norm loss yoy in 2Q11

We expect TRUE to have a normalised loss of -Bt394mn for 2Q11, which will be better than last year with a norm loss of -Bt487mn on growth of True Move (core business) with higher subscriber numbers and good I-phone 4 sales. Meanwhile, True Vision and True Online earnings are expected to be flat. The 2Q11 earnings, compared to 1Q11, should fall from the norm loss of -Bt197mn pressured by the low season.

3G services to support further growth

We estimate a recovery will be seen in 3Q11, but in 4Q11, TRUE will have to pay higher revenue sharing (from 25% to 30%) to CAT as stipulated in the concession agreement. Thus, we are maintaining our estimate of a norm loss of -Bt724mn for 2011. After the Attorney- General approval of the TRUE - CAT 3G contracts, we see less risk on legal issues and TRUE has already started 1,000 3G base station construction in line with the new CAT contract (under the True Move-H brand). A new marketing promotion campaign with a Bt100 discount when True Move-H customers buy new phones, will lead some existing customers under Hutch and True Move, to switch to Real Move and they are likely to reach the year-end target of 1mn subscribers. This will also support the recovery.

more...

[lomatopo]

Concession Overview

http://www.bdo-thaitax.com/bdo/in-the-news/2863

Bangkok Post - 5 January 2011

Government and telecom industry continue to spar over who gained and who lost, and how much, from concession changes.

The local telecommunications industry is preparing for the endgame this year in a protracted dispute over mobile concessions, though the government is still uncertain how to resolve the many legal issues involved. Operators have been working on the issue for years in the belief that amendments made over the past 15 years or so might be challenged one day and could cause turbulence in the industry. The concessions of the top three players - Advanced Info Service, DTAC and True Move - have come under heavy scrutiny by the Democrat-led government. AIS, founded by Thaksin Shinawatra, has drawn most of the attention as officials focus on agreements that favoured companies linked to the telecoms tycoon-turned politician. The mobile leader has countered by demanding fair and equal treatment, since its two smaller rivals have also benefited from changes to their agreements with state telecom enterprises.

All operators want to see clarity since their concessions do not have much longer to run, and it is becoming hard to make long-range strategic plans given the uncertainty. The agreement between third-ranked True Move and CAT Telecom expires in 2013, AIS's concession with TOT Plc in 2015, and DTAC's deal with CAT in 2018.

[lomatopo]

Attorney-General dicision on DTAC's 3G service

By THE NATION

Published on July 30, 2011

The Office of the Attorney-General is expected to advise CAT Telecom within two weeks on whether Total Access Communication (DTAC) can launch a commercial third-generation wireless broadband service under its CAT concession, Attorney-General Julasing Wasantasing said yesterday. He added that DTAC might be deemed in breach of the concession contract if it goes ahead with the launch without waiting for his office to reply to CAT on the issue.

DTAC last week announced it would launch the 3G service in Bangkok on August 15. It is confident that the launch can be made under the permit it secured from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to install and use the 3G base stations to provide the service. However, some NTC commissioners last week said that permit was only for the installation of the base stations, while the actual service launch depended on an agreement between CAT and DTAC.

DTAC has been waiting for a CAT permit to launch the commercial 3G service for years, a change from the current permit to operate it on a non-commercial trial basis. The second-largest cellular operator is anxious to launch the commercial 3G service as its rivals have already launched and expanded theirs.

[lomatopo]

AIS inks roaming deal with TOT for its 3G customers (Thailand)

On 08.01.11, In Mobile, By Editor

The Thailand based Advanced Info Service (AIS) stated that it will start to enable 3G national roaming for its customers, powered by the network operated by the state-owned TOT, with effect from the beginning of October. AIS boasts of 60,000 customers who will have access to the 3G network operated by TOT in Greater Bangkok and the upcoming nationwide network for data services, by way of the deal signed with TOT. Up to 1 million AIS customers will be allowed to roam on the networks in one year’s time.

Currently, Bangkok and seven other major provinces are covered by the HSPA enabled 3G network owned by AIS. In addition, the operator has close to 1,880 3G enabled base stations, running on the interim 900 MHz spectrum. 3G licenses in the more conventional 2100 MHz spectrum are still to be awarded by the government. According to the chief operating officer Mark Chong Chin Kok, AIS is looking to invest more once it gets the 2.1GHz license.

http://wirelessfederation.com/news/84673-ais-inks-roaming-deal-with-tot-for-its-3g-customers-thailand/

[lomatopo]

DTAC told to wait for 3G approval

Published: 5/08/2011 at 12:00 AM

Newspaper section: Business

CAT Telecom has warned its concessionaire DTAC to delay the start of its planned commercial 3G service this month, or it may face charges of breaching its concession agreement. The state telecom enterprise said the second-ranked mobile operator should wait until the Office of the Attorney General has approved the plan, which is subject to review under the Public-Private Joint Venture Act.

But DTAC chief executive Jon Eddy Abdullah insisted the company could not wait any longer and would start commercial 3G service in Bangkok by mid-August as planned. Despite lacking approval from CAT, DTAC said it had received a usage licence _ basically formal permission to start operating on a frequency _ from the acting National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, clearing the way for commercial 3G service.

CAT president Jirayuth Rungsrithong said DTAC would be breaching its concession agreement if 3G went ahead, and the dispute would need to go to arbitration.''DTAC should not be in a rush to market 3G service as it is not an equation for success,'' he said. ''We don't want to create a new legal dispute as all [conditions for the 3G approval process for DTAC] are now positive.'' Mr Jirayuth said he would discuss his suggestions soon with Mr Abdullah. DTAC feels it has no choice but to start 3G now that its rivals True Move and Advanced Info Service have begun their own commercial services. Competition to offer 3G on existing frequencies of the three major mobile operators will likely intensify this month.

DTAC said it would have 400 base stations in Bangkok ready by mid-August, increasing to 2,000 bases covering 20 provinces by year-end.

[Crushdepth]

DTAC should not be in a rush to market 3G service as it is not an equation for success, he said.

Can the government please just close CAT down?

[lomatopo]

Based on this service message I surmise True are expanding their 3G coverage in metro-Bangkok:

[lomatopo]

DTAC to go ahead wIth 3G launch thIs week

By Usanee Mongkolporn,

Sirivish Toomgum

The Nation

Published on August 15, 2011

Total Access Communication (DTAC) will press ahead with the launch of its third-generation wireless broadband service in Bangkok this week as planned, despite a possible legal threat from its concession owner CAT Telecom.

DTAC has about a million subscribers with 3G-850-megahertz mobile phones, of whom about 400,000 are in Bangkok. It believes it has to debut the service now or it might lose premium subscribers to competitors Real Move and Advanced Info Service, which launched full 3G services last month.

CAT has warned DTAC that it should wait for a ruling by the Office of the Attorney-General on whether the launch of a commercial 3G service is appropriate under its CAT concession. The office recently warned DTAC that launching the service before its ruling could put the telecom at risk of legal action.

DTAC believes it can launch the service under a permit it secured from

the National Telecommunica-tions Commission to install and use a 3G network. It argues that this is not in fact the launch of |a new commercial service but |simply an upgrade of network data-transmission speeds for its customers.

A telecom-industry source said CAT had asked DTAC to withdraw its complaint at the Central Administrative Court against the state agency and its board in connection with the CAT-True Group deals on collaboration in 3G business first, and then CAT would urge the Office of the Attorney-General to expedite its ruling.

The source added that DTAC might want to wait to see how the new minister of information and communications technology handles the CAT-True deals. If the minister declines to look into the matter, DTAC might consider withdrawing its court complaint.

DTAC has said many times that its complaint against the deals and its 3G service launch are two separate issues.

CAT and True's subsidiaries Real Move and Real Future signed deals in January to develop jointly a nationwide 3G-850MHz service. In April, DTAC filed the court complaint against the legitimacy of the deals and against the CAT board for allowing the state agency to sign them with True group.

DTAC had its staff try the new 3G service last month. It will install 2,000 3G base stations by next year to cover 40 provinces, of which 400 are already available in Bangkok.

[lomatopo]

Suspect this consortium will end badly if it ever gets off the ground.

Slow-moving TOT 3G plan pushes down Samart's

By USANEE MONGKOLPORN

THE NATION

Published on August 16, 2011

Samart Corp group has lowered its revenue forecast for this year to about Bt24 billion from Bt26 billion, mainly because of the slow process of TOT's roll-out of a nationwide 3G network. Samart president Watchai Vilailuck yesterday said the downward revision was also in line with the delays of many state agencies' plans to launch various information-and-communications-technology projects. But he is confident new projects will finally get off the ground this year under the new government.

TOT granted a deal worth Bt15.99 billion to the SL consortium of Loxley-Samart in May to install more than 4,700 base stations nationwide for a third-generation wireless broadband network. Samart is responsible for installing 1,700 bases at a cost of between Bt6 billion and Bt7 billion. Of total anticipated revenue from this project, Samart has already realised Bt2.438 billion, which contributed to the revenue growth of its group in the second quarter.

However, Samart might be able to install only about 1,000 bases this year for TOT, given that the agency has moved slowly in seeking locations for the base stations.

more...

[lomatopo]

DTAC's letter to minister conveys its hopes and frustrations

By USANEE MONGKOLPORN

SIRIVISH TOOMGUM

THE NATION

Published on August 19, 2011

The letter Total Access Communication (DTAC) submitted to the Information and Communications Technology Ministry on Wednesday conveyed its hopes - and feelings of hopelessness - in its attempts over the past four years to win consent from CAT Telecom to launch a commercial third-generation wireless broadband service.

Yesterday ICT Minister Anudith Nakornthap called in CAT's chief executive officer, Jirayuth Rungsrithong, to explain the case.

Revealing contents from the letter, an ICT Ministry source said DTAC claimed that its story began in March 2008 when it proposed to its concession owner CAT its plan to upgrade its network. It said it wanted to provide the 3G service using high-speed packet access (HSPA) technology on the 824-849-megahertz and 869MHz-894MHz bands.

In May that year, it told CAT again that it would provide the service under the concession by sharing 3G revenue with the state agency and would transfer the 3G network to CAT. It also agreed to give CAT the right to use 2.5MHz bandwidth of its 800MHz. The letter said CAT then allocated its own 2.3MHz bandwidth of its 800MHz spectrum, plus 2.5MHz bandwidth of the same spectrum secured from DTAC, to TrueMove to provide the service on a non-commercial trial basis.

more...

[lomatopo]

Found this snippet in True's Q211 PR...

The Baht 13.1 billion raised from the Q2 rights offering, which was 110.5% oversubscribed, will primarily finance the expansion of True Move H 3G services.

[lomatopo]

Telenor exec vests hopes in Yingluck Govt

By SIRIVISH TOOMGUM,

USANEE MONGKOLPORN

THE NATION

Published on August 24, 2011

The head of Telenor Group's Asian operations is hopeful that the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra will make available licences for 3G service on the 2.1-gigahertz spectrum - key to promoting major investment in the industry, which would help boost economic growth accordingly.

Sigve Brekke said the new government was interested in increasing investment in the country and developing the information and communications technology industry, and one way to achieve this was to bring forward the 3G-2.1GHz spectrum licensing.

Brekke, former chief executive officer of Total Access Communication, said that while waiting for such a licence, DTAC would continue establishing its third-generation wireless broadband service on its 850-megahertz network across the country. Telenor, a Norwegian telecommunications giant, is a strategic partner of DTAC.

Telecom operators have been waiting for the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) to get off the ground and grant the 2.1GHz licences, which they expect to spark investment to the tune of more than Bt10 billion in nationwide 3G networks. Yingluck said yesterday during the government's policy announcement to Parliament that her administration would push hard to get the NBTC off the ground to join the government in promoting equal access to broadband wireless services.

more...

[lomatopo]

Not sure if this good news or bad news?

Thailand elects new telecom commissioners

Dylan Bushell-Embling | September 06, 2011

telecomasia.net

After 14 long years, the Thai government has finally elected the members of in-formation super regulator the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC). The 11-member panel consists of representatives mainly from the telecom, television, consumer protection and legal sectors, Bangkok Post reported. Some commentators have criticized the line-up, alleging that some members do not have the industry experience required to be telecom or broadcasting commissioners, and that that too many have military backgrounds. The selection process itself had also come under fire, with a senator asking that the secret ballot process be postponed. But this request had been voted down. Industry watchers also expect the NBTC to be heading towards a legal minefield, as the body tackles the weighty issues that have kept the Thai telecom market in turmoil.

The new regulator will need to sort out a spectrum policy and pave the way for a long-anticipated 2.1GHz spectrum auction, somehow reconciling the conflicting interests of state-owned CAT and TOT and private operators DTAC, True and AIS. The establishment of the NBTC was first mandated in Thailand's 1997 constitution, but the process was repeatedly held up by bureaucracy and political disagreements. But when a court decision threw the authority of current telecom regulator NTC into doubt – and derailed the nation's planned 3G auctions – efforts to create the new body accelerated.

[lomatopo]

AIS launched 3G on 900 Mhz on 29 July 2011 in Bangkok and seven provinces across 1,884 base-stations.

This ThaiVisa thread has a lot of great information.

Edited September 7, 2011 by lomatopo

[lomatopo]

Continuing the flurry of 3G activity (use it or lose it ), DTAC turned up 3G service on 400 base-stations (maybe ~ 600 now) on 850 Mhz in metro-Bangkok.

This ThaiVisa thread has a lot of detail.

Edited September 7, 2011 by lomatopo