Pattaya Police Raid Poker Gambling Ring, Arrest 9 Foreign Players

[Jonathan Fairfield]

Phuket going 'smart' with B430mn initiative

PHUKET: The province is forging ahead to develop 'smart city' status with a 430 million baht initiative launched earlier this year.

Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak gave the green light on March 21 to launch the pilot project. “The Thai government had been developing a smart-city concept, focusing on information-technology systems, which would become the foundation for the economy, society and tourism,” Deputy PM Somkid said.

The same day, Phuket Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada and the mayor of Busan, South Korea, inked a deal to adopt digital technologies already in use in some of South Korea’s smart cities.

Information and Communications Technology Minister Uttama Savana-yana told the Phuket Gazette that Thailand’s Software Industry Promotion Agency (SIPA) was charged with using the 430-million-baht budget to develop the infrastructure for Phuket’s smart city status.

The minister initially announced the idea of turning Phuket into a ‘smart city’ in September of last year, concentrating on environmental concerns, investment-friendliness and tourist safety.

Plans for a 10-billion-baht digital real estate development, billed as a ‘digital-business hub with a view’ in Pa Khlok were revealed last December as part of a joint government-private sector venture aimed at attracting global technology giants, such as Microsoft, Google, Alibaba, Samsung and Facebook.

Full story: http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Phuket-going-smart-B430mn-initiative/64055?desktopversion#ad-image-0

-- Phuket Gazette 2016-06-13

[LivinginKata]

'430-million-baht budget to develop the infrastructure for Phukets smart city status.'

So where is the 430 million baht going ?? Smart city ?? Sounds more like smart folks skimming off a lot of Baht ...

[eisfeld]

They want to attract the likes of Microsoft and Google? To Phuket? Seriously? Why would these companies set up shop here? Why would employees move here?

I'm all for attracting investments and talent. Especially in the high tech industry. Thailand (especially Chiang Mai) already had a good start in terms of tech startups. A small scene has grown there.

They could attract tons of people by making it easy for digital nomads. Let them have their own company without need for 4 Thai staff and give them a reasonable tax rate plus easy to obtain work permit and 1 year visa.

What's there to lose? They don't take any jobs from locals and bring in a nice chunk of money into the local economy.

I can guarantee you that internet connections are not the problem here. You can get a commercial 1 gigabit/s connection from CAT if you really want to.

The real problems:

- Not much enforcement of laws

- The track record of courts and lawyers is pretty bad, too many scams going on

- People have little incentive to grow roots and build a future here as they can't own land, have visa worries etc

- Public infrastructure like roads, water- and electricity supply is crumbling

[Briggsy]

You can be absolutely sure this is about corruption and stealing 10% or more of this budget.

Does anyone remember the plan for Phuket to become the Asian technology hub (circa 10 or 15 years ago)? What happened to that? I can't even find any reference to it in old news archives because it has been buried so well!

[Psimbo]

You can be absolutely sure this is about corruption and stealing 10% or more of this budget.

Does anyone remember the plan for Phuket to become the Asian technology hub (circa 10 or 15 years ago)? What happened to that? I can't even find any reference to it in old news archives because it has been buried so well!

I've lost track of how many hubs Phuket was to have become over the past 12 years.

[exbikey]

You can be absolutely sure this is about corruption and stealing 10% or more of this budget.

Does anyone remember the plan for Phuket to become the Asian technology hub (circa 10 or 15 years ago)? What happened to that? I can't even find any reference to it in old news archives because it has been buried so well!

Didn't they build a 'high-tech park' (at least 1 building) on Chao Fa Rd. West where all (?) the software developers could take up residence?