Prospects of Telecommunications Business inthe Year 2008
The December 2007 general election has brought Thailand in the following 2008 the new government and the stronger political stability which, as a consequence, has not only gained back the confidence of both the investors and the operators but also attracted them to once again invest in various capital markets and businesses of the country. The once-sluggish investment atmosphere ; therefore, gradually becomes better. The new government itself has issued the policy which emphasizes economic stimulation in many ways ; for instance, promoting the investment in mega-projects to enable the increase in employment ; reducing the interest rate to encourage more household spending ; lifting financial as well as investment measures which hinder foreign investment and so on. However, despite such favorable factors, some same old factors which have affected telecommunications industry and caused concern among the operators ; for examples, the continually increasing oil price, leading to the rise of the production cost ; the Subprime problem of the United States of America which has presently spread to various regions of the world; the Baht appreciation which impacts exporters, the inflation problem and so forth still exist.
So far as the 2008 forecast of Thailand๛s telecommunications business is concerned, a research by National Statistical Office has revealed that the year 2008 is likely to witness the increase in the reliance on Information and
Technology of both the households and offices. Therefore, it is expected that the private and the state sectors would be in good co-operation not solely on the development of the IT system to enhance its efficiency but also on the
prudent utilization of the IT resources for adequate service provision country-wide. Due to the rapid growth and progress of telecommunications industry, technological development and convergence are necessary as they lead to
the better and quicker services with more beneficial options. The new development on content and application as well as the issue of licenses by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) which allow diverse service provision are essential bases which enable Thailand to be potential and ready for the competition in the international level. Besides, the government is well intent on promoting the use of Information Technology to develop its administration and management. So, e-government, e-commerce and others are encouraged in order to reduce unnecessary working processes and increase administration efficiency. For this purpose, it plans to invest in Broadband network to support the high-speed Internet which will help enhance the virtual private network usage nationwide, enabling the development of new services for the public.
Significant Telecom Business
Fixed-line telephone : The fixed-line telephone network which has been only for voice transmission can also be developed to be the network for high-speed data transmission, providing both the high- speed Internet and video
transmission at the same time. Moreover, the existing fixed-line telephone network - Fiber optic and copper cable - is very potential to enhance higher capacity which will be very useful for the telecom network of high-speed data
transfer. Above all, the clients will receive the benefit from this network development.
Mobile phone : As at present the penetration rate of mobile phone usage almost reaches the saturated point so it is expected that the usage of mobile phones will not increase whereas the income per mobile number tends to be unchanged or decreased respectively. Moreover, the competition among the operators for the clients still focuses on the price deduction which, however, is a benefit for users as the calling rate is decreased.
Broadband Internet service : Presently there are more and more broadband Internet Service Providers (ISP) as the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has issued the high-speed Internet Service Provider license
to many ISPs. Nonetheless, most users cling to 3 giant operators who already have fixed-line telephone network ; TOT, True and TT&T. Currently, there are 16 million household users while only 1 million or 5% of them use the
broadband Internet showing that the penetration rate is still low compared to the country of equal GDP (Gross Domestic Product) per capita to Thailand. Therefore, the Internet business expanding chance is still high.
