IT & Telecoms
From The Report: Thailand 2014
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With the country continuing its telecoms development, Thailand’s internet connectivity is about to improve exponentially. Wireless speeds are on their way up and wireless access is expanding rapidly. In 2001 the passing of the Telecommunications Business Act established three types of licenses: one for internet service providers without a network, one for those with infrastructure, and one for private networks. In the second quarter of 2013 Thailand’s broadband adoption rate was up 191% quarter-on-quarter. In addition, the country ranked 39th in the world in terms of broadband adoption and 22nd in terms of connection speed. The local data centre business is forecast to expand by 21% in 2013 to around $56m, due to the adoption of cloud computing, the need for disaster recovery and the increasing connectivity within the ASEAN region. The outlook for the telecoms sector is more positive than it has been in years. Given the 3G auction and the bright prospects for 4G, companies are set to see their business improve, and customers will likely benefit from better performance.

This chapter contains interviews with Anudith Nakornthap, Minister of Information and Communication Technology; Pete Bodharamik, CEO, Jasmine International; and Jon Eddy Abdullah, CEO, Total Access Communication.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

All change: Internet speeds and penetration are up, while efforts to promote IT-related skills, capacity and institutions continue
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With the country working through its telecoms issues, Thailand’s internet connectivity is about to improve exponentially. Wireless speeds are on their way up and wireless access is expanding rapidly. The broadband offering has been fairly solid in Thailand given the lack of widespread 3G and 4G. For a number of years people in the urban centres and many of rural areas could get connected to a relatively fast and stable DSL line, and usage has been increasing steadily. However, as faster and better…

Interview

OBG talks to Anudith Nakornthap, Minister of Information and Communication Technology
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Interview:Anudith Nakornthap How is the ministry promoting ICT development across the kingdom, including rural provinces? ANUDITH NAKORNTHAP: The ministry is promoting ICT development across the country, especially in rural areas, through a number of different strategies. In particular, IT infrastructure is being developed to accelerate the creation of a high-speed communications network that is broad based, accessible, adequate, reliable and reasonably priced. This will enable Thailand to…

Interview

OBG talks to Anudith Nakornthap, Minister of Information and Communication Technology
OBG
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Interview:Anudith Nakornthap How is the ministry promoting ICT development across the kingdom, including rural provinces? ANUDITH NAKORNTHAP: The ministry is promoting ICT development across the country, especially in rural areas, through a number of different strategies. In particular, IT infrastructure is being developed to accelerate the creation of a high-speed communications network that is broad based, accessible, adequate, reliable and reasonably priced. This will enable Thailand to…

Analysis

Cloudy past, bright future: The adoption of cloud services is taking off
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Cloud computing has not been the most popular of technologies in Thailand. Developers, for example, are much more interested in working on Android projects than cloud ones, according to a survey carried out by the IMC Institute, which conducts research on information and communications technology (ICT) markets and policy in Thailand. However, the country is fast waking up to the potential of, and the need for, the cloud, and the country is quickly becoming one of the more promising markets for it.…

Interview

OBG talks to Pete Bodharamik, CEO, Jasmine International
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Interview:Pete Bodharamik How would you describe the long-term developmentpotential of Thailand’s broadband market? PETE BODHARAMIK: In terms of broadband penetration,Thailand still has a long way to go before it reacheslevels comparable to other countries at a similarstage of development. If you consider that Mexicoand Turkey have internet penetration rates of 26%and 47.2%, respectively, against Thailand’s 18.4%,there is massive market potential in…

Overview

Rapid transformation: The sector is swiftly moving on with new technologies
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The telecommunications market in Thailand is one of the more complicated in the world. Because of its history and the way it evolved with changing technologies – and changing politics – a regulatory bottleneck formed that held back development and kept the market from advancing as fast as its regional competitors. However, despite complications in terms of spectrum and concerns about the competitiveness of the sector, telephony in Thailand has been healthy and growing for years. The country is…

Interview

OBG talks to Jon Eddy Abdullah, CEO, Total Access Communication (DTAC)
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Interview:Jon Eddy Abdullah What are the prospects for the launch of a 4G network in Thailand and what impact will it have? JON EDDY ABDULLAH: The launch of 3G mobile broadband in Thailand has had a phenomenal impact on the country. Mobile operators are now functioning in a more complex market, where the priority has shifted to becoming a mobile internet company. Smartphones in particular have driven this change; operators have to contend with the massive data demand stemming from users having…

Interview

OBG talks to Jon Eddy Abdullah, CEO, Total Access Communication (DTAC)
OBG
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Interview:Jon Eddy Abdullah What are the prospects for the launch of a 4G network in Thailand and what impact will it have? JON EDDY ABDULLAH: The launch of 3G mobile broadband in Thailand has had a phenomenal impact on the country. Mobile operators are now functioning in a more complex market, where the priority has shifted to becoming a mobile internet company. Smartphones in particular have driven this change; operators have to contend with the massive data demand stemming from users having…

Analysis

3G and beyond: Making up for lost time as the roll-out of new services continues
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Despite the delayed roll-out of 3G, the new services on 2100 MHz are thriving and 4G is not far behind. Indeed, the mood in late 2013 and early 2014 was optimistic because of the smooth transition to 3G, and both operators and regulators were beginning to contemplate services that just months earlier were not even considered a possibility. A quick jump to 4G is now in the works. Due to the delay of 3G services, both operators and customers appear to be making up for lost time, transitioning to the…