Deal Finalised For One Million Computer Tablets: Thailand

[webfact]

Deal finalised for one million tablets

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The government will increase the number of tablets it purchases to a million and they will be bought at US$82 (Bt2,520) apiece, it was decided at a discussion between Thai representatives and the Chinese supplier yesterday.

Executives from Shenzhen Scope Scientific Development met the procurement panel for the government's One Tablet Per Child project.

The Information and Communications Technology Ministry and Shenzhen Scope are scheduled to sign a contract on April 2.

Earlier, it was reported that the government would purchase only 900,000 units at $81 apiece and that the shipment would be to Laem Chabang Port. However, yesterday both sides agreed that the tablets would be delivered at Suvarnabhumi Airport instead and the price would stand at $82 per unit, panel member Anek Ratpiyapaporn said.

"The extra $1 is to cover transportation cost," he said, adding that the budget earmarked for the procurement was about Bt2.46 billion calculated at an exchange rate of Bt30 to the dollar.

Anek said payments would be made to the supplier on the basis of the number of units delivered to Thailand each time.

According to him, 2,000 tablets will come in the first lot, which will be used to train teachers.

-- The Nation 2012-03-24

[BookMan]

I wonder if there has been a 'servicing' agreement struck? 2 year warranty on the Tablets?

Maybe at $81 (+$1 delivered!) they are almost disposable?

[AZBill]

Does that price also factor in the graft money the Chinese supplier undoubtedly paid for the contract? Unlikely these POS's will last more than a few weeks. Typical Thai government cluster-f__k!

[Pib]

I wonder if there has been a 'servicing' agreement struck? 2 year warranty on the Tablets?

Maybe at $81 (+$1 delivered!) they are almost disposable?

If I remember right all the competing companies offered at least a 1 year warranty as that was part of the contact bid requirements.

[Buchholz]

The government will increase the number of tablets it purchases to a million

Executives from Shenzhen Scope Scientific Development met the procurement panel for the government's One Tablet Per Child project.

To fulfill their One Tablet Per Child project pledge.... they need to order 11 million tablets, not one million.

While even attempting to get 10% of their promise... how's the other "project" that is essential and partnered with it coming along??

We haven't been hearing about the Smart Thailand scheme. It's allocated Thirty Billion Baht to provide nation-wide free WiFi.

Will it be completed and running in time for the supposed tablet distribution, prior to school starting in May?

.

.

Edited March 24, 2012 by Buchholz

[pipo1000]

From previous thread relating this scam project

Chinnapat said Obec would likely ask that the first batch of tablets total 50,000 units. "During the negotiating rounds, we talked about 2,000 units in the first lot, but we may well need to increase the number," he said.

Chinnapat explained that Obec would need the devices early to train the trainers on their use before the end of April. In early May, Obec would then have to provide training to about 15,000 teachers and educational supervisors, too.

The agency chief said not all Prathom 1 students would get the devices at the start of the upcoming academic semester.

"I think the second batch will arrive when the semester has already started," he said.

"The delivery will likely be made in three big lots."

This time

According to him, 2,000 tablets will come in the first lot, which will be used to train teachers.

So in fact they will have trouble to scramble together 2000 pieces for delivery end of next month, as it is clear that the 50.000 desired units will not be available, which will be used to train an average of 8 teachers per tablet. ( are they 100 inch of size?)

But before the start of the academic year,about 2 weeks later, they will have another lot of 333.000 pieces delivered.

Yeah right, Ten things you will never hear in Thailand.............................

[bobl]

And nobody bats an eyelid that it's now become ONE MILLION DOLLARS extra, for shipping by air rather than sea.

I suppose nobody considered sending the FIRST batch by air and the rest by sea (given that distributing the first batch would take a finite time, by which time the second and subsequent batches would start arriving).

Shouldn't they have people with a modicum of business acumen signing these deals?

[necronx99]

What's the over / under on how many of these tablets will be present, accounted for and functioning one year from now?

1.90 on 400,000 would be my guess.

[OzMick]

Couldn't they sign the contract a day earlier?

[Thaddeus]

And nobody bats an eyelid that it's now become ONE MILLION DOLLARS extra, for shipping by air rather than sea.

It was the first thing I noticed, and you beat me to it.

Plenty of room for a bit of skimming there.

[coldmike]

Even assuming, ah em, that they really do deliver a million tablets on time, does this mean that next years fresh crop of students will also get their million tablets, then next year again etc etc etc.

Then, assuming cheap devices need new batteries every 1 to 2 years and hardware enhancement progresses at the same pace as the last decade, it would seem that at least every two years the students will need to upgrade to new units.

So if all goes according to plan, it sounds like a very lucrative deal for someone. Lucky the Thai Gov't is flush with cash.

[noitom]

The prudence and economy of shipping the first 2,000 for teacher training, while the balance is shipped by more economical sea, takes a much lower priority to the skim money agreed as part of the "revised deal." The skim/graft money is the key to the tablet initiative.

[lucjoker]

I wonder if there has been a 'servicing' agreement struck? 2 year warranty on the Tablets?

Maybe at $81 (+$1 delivered!) they are almost disposable?

any body can buy a tablet pc 7" or 10" (price is the same) for 2500bht,if you buy more let say 20 ,than it goes down

allready to 2200 bht ,if you buy 100 000 pcs the price will be below 1500 bht ...............

so 900 000 tablets bought on 1000 bht will cost 1.35 billion bht.......much lower than 2,6 billion bht ????????

i was in Shenzen 3 weeks ago ,i could do the deal for 1000 bht a pcs ,but than i wont have any profit offcourse.........

[Albacore]

I wonder if there has been a 'servicing' agreement struck? 2 year warranty on the Tablets?

Maybe at $81 (+$1 delivered!) they are almost disposable?

any body can buy a tablet pc 7" or 10" (price is the same) for 2500bht,if you buy more let say 20 ,than it goes down

allready to 2200 bht ,if you buy 100 000 pcs the price will be below 1500 bht ...............

so 900 000 tablets bought on 1000 bht will cost 1.35 billion bht.......much lower than 2,6 billion bht ????????

i was in Shenzen 3 weeks ago ,i could do the deal for 1000 bht a pcs ,but than i wont have any profit offcourse.........

Somebody should expose this fraud for what it is. I would love to see a Thai article that at least points out that anyone can buy a single identical tablet for the same price as the government is paying for 1,000,000. If anyone can just go work out a deal for 20 tablets at 2,200 baht a piece, there is a lot of skimming going on. It's a pretty rotten thing to further cheat the children of this country out of anything resembling a decent education.

[khaowong1]

Don't anyone on this forum know anyone at one of the Thai newspapers that could point out to the Thai people that they are being screwed about double on these 2500 bht tablets?

[volk666]

I've seen similarly spec tablet being offered for 6,000+, I guess it's negotiable but still a long way to go to 2,400.

Well established companies offered much more than Scope, Huawei wanted $135, which is 4,000.

So far no one questioned the legality of the deal - the auction was conducted under government to government agreement but the actual contract is being signed as if following the usual procurement procedures. That change might require a new auction with new rules and bids open to everybody, not just four suppliers recommended by Chinese government. Usual procedure might also require bidders to comply with several more conditions - financial strength and previous experience of working for the government(s). Scope might have been excluded from the start.

Someone might raise a big stink once the documents are signed. Minister himself mentioned the parallels with the fire trucks saga once.

[theblether]

I don't want to get involved in the cost analysis / graft debate..........however if by some fluke chance this policy is ever carried out then it has to be applauded.

So forgive me if I stand aside form the cynical part...................

Computer tablets for all Thai children?

[bigbamboo]

Most kid's stuff made in China breaks in the first week of use!

[h90]

The government will increase the number of tablets it purchases to a million

Executives from Shenzhen Scope Scientific Development met the procurement panel for the government's One Tablet Per Child project.

To fulfill their One Tablet Per Child project pledge.... they need to order 11 million tablets, not one million.

While even attempting to get 10% of their promise... how's the other "project" that is essential and partnered with it coming along??

We haven't been hearing about the Smart Thailand scheme. It's allocated Thirty Billion Baht to provide nation-wide free WiFi.

Will it be completed and running in time for the supposed tablet distribution, prior to school starting in May?

.

.

Buchi you forget one thing: "In 6 month everyone in Thailand will be rich" Or was it 3 month, I can't recall. As they fulfilled this promise already these rich kids can buy the tablets them self. (and most probably cheaper)

[slapout]

If memory serves correctly the Education Ministry has said these widgets will not be given to the upper grades, but more complex ones. Wonder how many grades/models they are planning to cover all students in Thailand?

The price per unit, transport cost, number ordered, number received, number distributed, budget alloted, have , as yet been formally agreed/publicised. The budget alloted will be modified, added to, etc, but in its entirety, will disappear down a rat hole that will have several avenues of escape/disbursement.

[KIWIBATCH]

Don't anyone on this forum know anyone at one of the Thai newspapers that could point out to the Thai people that they are being screwed about double on these 2500 bht tablets?

email this and your thoughts/views to the Bangkok Post and/or Andrew Drummond

[volk666]

At the moment the entire OTPC budget is being handled by the Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology with Ministry of Education being left out. This is unacceptable, hence the desire to buy more tablets for higher grades by Ministry of Education itself. For now MoE is losing the turf battle but they are just getting warmed up and they delayed MICT deal by at least a couple of weeks already, which is crucial for the election promise to put tablets on children desks when the new school year starts.

[hellodolly]

I don't want to get involved in the cost analysis / graft debate..........however if by some fluke chance this policy is ever carried out then it has to be applauded.

So forgive me if I stand aside form the cynical part...................

Computer tablets for all Thai children?

I wonder how many games they will have.

Am I the only one wondering if the 2,000 for teacher training will go to teachers at the schools without electricity?

[Buchholz]

At the moment the entire OTPC budget is being handled by the Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology with Ministry of Education being left out. This is unacceptable, hence the desire to buy more tablets for higher grades by Ministry of Education itself. For now MoE is losing the turf battle but they are just getting warmed up and they delayed MICT deal by at least a couple of weeks already, which is crucial for the election promise to put tablets on children desks when the new school year starts.

One would have thought that the 30 Billion Baht given to ICT for Smart Thailand nation-wide WiFi scheme would have satisfied their greed for paybacks without having to encroach on Education's hog trough, especially with the Smart Thailand budget allocation being significantly more money than the One Tablet Per 10 Or So Children program.

ICT's greed is driving a wedge for PTP in-fighting.

.

Edited March 24, 2012 by Buchholz

[Pseudolus]

I think we should have a competition to see who can buy one of these first from Pantip or MBK (as in, an off the back of the wagon version that never quite found their way to the kids)

Also, just a side thought, but are they having the import tax applied to them which might explain the cost?

Thirdly, everything else covered already. They will be useless. The Chinese company will have chucked loads of brown paper bags about (who will have a few boxes of "wedding present money" in their house this time?).

[warfie]

2,520 Baht... does that include the 300% import duties and taxes?

[kimamey]

And nobody bats an eyelid that it's now become ONE MILLION DOLLARS extra, for shipping by air rather than sea.

I suppose nobody considered sending the FIRST batch by air and the rest by sea (given that distributing the first batch would take a finite time, by which time the second and subsequent batches would start arriving).

Shouldn't they have people with a modicum of business acumen signing these deals?

Shouldn't they have people with a modicum of business acumen signing these deals?

Well I suppose they could have got the PM and former CEO of AIS to do it. Always assuming she could be found.

[kimamey]

2,520 Baht... does that include the 300% import duties and taxes?

This was done as a government to government deal to avoid this as far as I know.

Just wondering if it were subject to import tax would that be on any bribe money as well since this would really be importing corruption wouldn't it?

[Thaddeus]

2,520 Baht... does that include the 300% import duties and taxes?

This was done as a government to government deal to avoid this as far as I know.

Just wondering if it were subject to import tax would that be on any bribe money as well since this would really be importing corruption wouldn't it?

The last thing they need to import is corruption, the home grown stuff is plentiful.

[livingthedream]

Ok kids get on with your maths ...............