#  >  > Living And Legal Affairs In Thailand >  >  > Thailand and Asia News >  >  > Business, Finance & Economics in Thailand >  >  True-CAT model is a wake-up call

## StrontiumDog

*http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/loca...a-wake-up-call
*
*True-CAT model is a wake-up call*
Published: 21/02/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: News
 The government is embarking on an overhaul of  the troublesome mobile  phone concession regime, with the recent pact  between True Corp and CAT  Telecom seen as a model for restructuring the  industry.

 Officials have also been in talks with SK Telecom of South Korea and   NTT DoCoMo of Japan to carry Advanced Info Service's mobile business in   the worst-case scenario of the top-ranked operator failing to pay 74   billion baht compensation demanded by TOT Plc for damages resulting from   changes to past contracts, a government source said.

 The source said the overhaul was aimed at resolving the chronic   problems impeding industry development, notably the inability to offer   3G wireless broadband service at a time when most other countries offer   it and many are now preparing to launch 4G.

 The present problems are rooted in a series of amendments _ some of   them dating back as far as 15 years _ made to concessions between major   operators and the two state telecom enterprises, TOT and CAT Telecom.

 The Council of State, the government's legal adviser, concluded in   2007 that many of the changes, such as contract extensions and revisions   in revenue-sharing terms, breached the 1992 Public-Private Joint   Venture Act.

 The Act requires special scrutiny of agreements for ventures worth  one  billion baht or more, with cabinet approval in some cases.

 An investigative committee looking into all of the amendments   forwarded its recommendations to the Information and Communications   Technology Ministry.

 The ministry last week opened talks with the private operators and   state telecoms in an attempt to arrive at compensation figures.

 The ICT Ministry committee overseeing the talks has asked the operators to propose a compensation formula by Friday.

 The final compensation payment would not necessarily be the same as   that proposed by the investigative committee or claimed by the state   telecoms, said the government source, who has been part of a team   looking into industry reform for the past three months.

 "Compensation could be settled between the state telecoms and operators," he said.

 "The payments could be spread over 15 to 20 years to ease the financial burden on operators."

 TOT wants AIS to pay it 74 billion baht, including 40 billion in losses from the reduction of prepaid revenue-sharing.

 For CAT, it is estimated that amendments for second-ranked mobile   phone operator DTAC cost the state enterprise more than 20 billion baht,   True Move 6billion and Digital Phone Co 3 billion to 4 billion baht.

 The source said the reform plan was intended to solve private   companies' problems and also help TOT and CAT survive as viable   businesses in the future. They presently depend heavily on concession   revenue payments.

 "For a way out, we are looking to demand that private operators  compensate [TOT and CAT] for losses from past concession amendments, to  end the  old concession system and shift to a new business model," he  said.

 The source said that if the state enterprises and private operators   failed to negotiate payments, the issue would go to the cabinet.

 Another option is to take the case to the Civil Court, which would decide whether to accept it or recommend arbitration.

 The study team has outlined a plan to draft a new contract model  based  on a wholesale-resale agreement, under National Telecommunications   Commission regulations.

 The source acknowledged that True Move was seen as a test case because of the urgency of its situation.

 Its concession is due to end in 2013, while AIS's concession will end in 2015 and DTAC's in 2018.

 When True acquired the small Hutch mobile business, in which CAT was   also a partner, an opportunity arose for True and CAT to draw up a new   working arrangement, resulting in a 3G service wholesale-resale contract   lasting 14 years.

 The source said top executives of the three major mobile operators  had  acknowledged the government's intentions. If they agreed with the   plan, they would have to return their frequency rights to CAT and TOT.

 They would then enter rental contracts to use the state telecoms' equipment and networks under new business conditions.

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## hazz

> The government is embarking on an overhaul of the troublesome mobile phone concession regime, with the recent pact between True Corp and CAT Telecom seen as a model for restructuring the industry.


Presumably this means if you are a mobile phone operator, you will now be effectively going to asking true for permission to import telecoms equipment. 

Given how delays in issuing these permits have been a cause of complaint by DTAC and AIS, I can only imagine they are overwhelmed by this.

Its interesting to note how much inconvenience they will put the country too, just to make sure a thai company has a compensative advantage over its two large foreign owned competitors. I'm sure there could be thailand the hub of something announcement there.

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## StrontiumDog

*http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/loca...-into-quitting
*
*AIS lawsuit threat spooks half of TOT's board into quitting*
Published: 24/02/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: News
 Nearly half of the board members of TOT Plc have  tendered their  resignations over the past two days for fear of a  possible legal  backlash over the state enterprise's move to demand  compensation from  mobile market leader Advanced Info Service.

 Five of the 12 board members decided to quit because they were  unhappy  with the board's decision to submit the AIS compensation case  for  approval at a meeting tomorrow, TOT sources said.

 TOT is under pressure from the government to pursue massive  compensation from AIS over a series of amendments to its concession.

 The amendments, made on separate occasions to reduce AIS's revenue   sharing for its pre-paid mobile phone service, caused TOT to lose some   74 billion baht in income from the operator, according to the   government.

 A TOT board member said yesterday the directors who quit were   concerned that they would be subject to legal action from AIS if the   private concessionaire fought back against the state telecom   enterprise's compensation demand.

 Three of the five board members submitted their resignations on   Tuesday: Wanchati Santikoonchorn, Wanee Touchsanamomtien and Nutchanart   Pantawangkoon. The two others who submitted their resignation letters   yesterday were Djitt Laowattana and Verathai Suntipraphop.

 Dr Djitt admitted he had decided to resign from the board as he no   longer wanted the job. He declined to elaborate and refused to say   whether any more members would resign.

 Another board member, who asked not to be named, said the directors   had gradually quit because they were frustrated at the government's   pressure on TOT to demand compensation from AIS.

 He said TOT had failed to comply with Section 22 of the 1992   Public-Private Joint Venture Act, before the state enterprise sent a   notice to AIS to demand 74 billion baht in compensation from past   concession amendments.

 Section 22 requires state enterprises doing business with private   firms to set up committees to follow up their work to ensure that both   comply with their agreements.

 "It is the government's right to protect the interests of the nation [by pushing for the compensation]," the board member said.

 "But if the state does not strictly comply with the regulation, the   TOT board, not the politicians, will be subject to lawsuits from the   private company."

 The source also said there was little chance that TOT would be able to collect the 74 billion baht it believes AIA owes it.

 The Supreme Court found on Feb 26 last year that former premier   Thaksin Shinawatra had abused his authority as head of government to   secure changes favourable to member companies of Shin Corp, in which his   family had a majority holding before they sold it to Singapore's   Temasek Holdings in 2006.

 "The court ruled Thaksin had abused his authority, not AIS or the company's executives," the source said.

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## StrontiumDog

*Thai telecom - carnal politics at its worst | Telecom Asia
*
*Thai telecom -  carnal politics at its worst*

 Don Sambandaraksa  |           April 29, 2011
 Amitiae      

There have been many attempts to try and make sense of the telco   industry in Thailand; why state telco and concession holder CAT allowed   TrueMove to take over Hutch and launch an HSPA 3G network and why  fellow  state telco TOT has been so slow in signing off the 3G expansion   project bid that was won by a consortium of Nokia-Siemens and Huawei.

 In  the TOT case in particular, the board refused to sign off the  project  until a few days ago after something happened under the radar.

 Both  projects could land both state enterprise boards in deep  trouble for  irregularities. The CAT decision seems a blatant breach of  the  Constitution that calls for a moratorium on frequency reallocation  until  the NBTC is up and running, not to mention tilting the playing  field in  favour of TrueMove (or was it TrueMove H, or was it RealMove?  And why  have so many names at all?)

 The TOT decision is bizarre in that  ZTE was kicked out for offering  too much network capacity in the  technical round and was not allowed to  bid. If ZTE wants to offer more  capacity in an auction, what is to  stop them? Well, the technical guys  at TOT, that's who.

 While many analysts have been left scratching their heads, the answer to everything is simple. It is an election year.

 This is not about technology. This is not public policy. This is raw, carnal, money politics at its worst.

 Someone  is cashing in to raise funds for the election, plain and  simple. Nobody  cares about rule of law, due process, fair and level  playing fields or  any other concept that is remotely civilised. It is  about money and the  need for money in the run-up to the elections.

 DTAC  almost launched its own 3G network alongside fellow CAT  concessionaire  TrueMove. Almost. The clincher was that in order to be  given CAT's  blessing to do so, they would have to sign away their right  to sue CAT  in the future. DTAC's new CEO obviously has the guts to  know enough is  enough and pushed back, suing CAT in the administrative  court to halt  the TrueMove deal.

 Some in DTAC say that the company only has to  tell CAT that it is  performing an in-band migration network upgrade  rather than ask for  permission. CAT, in its infinite wisdom, has neither  said yes or no and  is taking its time, five years and counting, to  decide. That is  regulation by running the clock out.

 TrueMove/RealMove/TrueMove  H (pick one, will you?) hit back, calling  a press conference and  painting itself as the kind, caring face of a  Thai minnow battling for  national pride and the rights of the poor one  million Hutch users  against the evil Telenorwegians.

 Colourful rhetoric perhaps, but  it sidesteps the question of True  gaining a backdoor de-facto  concession. Nor does it address the issue  of how granting RealMove  rights to do commercial 3G implicitly also  allows TrueMove’s test  network, on a different part of the 850  spectrum, to go commercial;  spectrum that DTAC claims is overlapping  2.5 MHz of its old 1G AMPS  network.

 And where is the regulator, the valiant enlightened  seven great ones  (as they were coined by media) of the National  Telecommunications  Commission? One key role of a regulator is to guard  industry from  short-term politics, something they are obviously not  doing. NTC  Commissioner Natee Sukonrat has gone on record saying that  850 MHz an  internal matter between CAT and its concessionaires.
 It is an election year, people. Welcome to Thailand.

 Don Sambandaraksa is a former reporter with the Bangkok Post. He now writes for the tech blog Amitiae

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## SteveCM

*Bangkok Post : War of words heats up*

Business          >         Telecommunications       

*War of words heats up*

*TDRI, True trade barbs over CAT deal * Published: 17/05/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: BusinessTrue Corporation and the Thailand Development  Research Institute (TDRI) have exchanged sharp words over the  controversial deal between True and its concession owner CAT Telecom,  with the leaders of both sides elaborating their own positions on the  issue.



Somkiat Tangkitvanich, a vice-chairman of the TDRI, repeated his claim that the deal amounted to a "pseudo-concession".

 Contracts under the deal cannot be separated, nor can they stand on  their own, thus violating Section 5 of the Public-Private Joint Venture  Act of 1992, he said.

 Suphachai Chearavanont, True's president and chief executive,  reiterated his view that the deal is a win-win solution and simply a  "natural business agreement" under the new telecom regime, not the  old-fashioned monopoly system to which the act is often applied.

 He warned Dr Somkiat not to make public his views on the deal as long  as he does not have an in-depth knowledge of the contract details.

 Mr Suphachai pointed out that Dr Somkiat is "only an engineer who is unskilled in legal interpretations".

 The True contract, hastily arranged after the company acquired the  small Hutch mobile business in which CAT has been a shareholder, runs  for 14 years. Signing it removed a huge uncertainty about what would  happen after True's existing mobile concession with CAT expires in 2013.

 The deal was heavily criticised after CAT granted four major  wholesale-resale contracts to the True subsidiaries Real Move and Real  Future to provide 3G wireless broadband service using high-speed packet  access technology.

 True is now being scrutinised by investigative committees, the Office  of the Auditor-General and the TDRI for possible violations of the  Spectrum Allocation Act and the Public-Private Joint Venture Act.

 Meanwhile, second-ranked operator Total Access Communication (DTAC)  filed a complaint on April 25 with the Central Administrative Court,  arguing the agreements between True and CAT stifled competition and were  unlawful and discriminatory.

 DTAC also asked the court to issue an injunction requiring CAT to  refrain from executing the obligations under the agreements until all  relevant authorities have reviewed and approved the transaction in  accordance with established procedures.

 The court is scheduled to hear arguments tomorrow.

 Dr Somkiat called the wholesale-resale contracts "unusual" in that  they favoured True, particularly the condition reserving 80% of the  state enterprise's 3G network capacity to True, thereby limiting the  number of potential operators sharing the facility.

 "Apart from TOT, True is now the only private operator providing 3G  wireless broadband service under the CAT agreements," he said.

 Dr Somkiat called the 14 billion baht in revenue projected for the  state telecom enterprise "too little", as it did not include frequency  value.

 CAT should be entitled to 23.5 billion baht with a wholesale margin of 35% instead of the present 23%.

 Dr Somkiat slammed CAT by saying the state telecom enterprise not  only allowed True to provide 3G service, but also caused CAT to suspend  its decision to approve DTAC's request for 3G commercial trials.

 "These practices by the state enterprise give True a huge advantage," he said.

 "It's no surprise that a report compiled by CAT's financial advisers  BNC and Value Partners forecasts True will increase its market share by  5% after providing 3G service ahead of the others."

 True will have access to a free 3G network while the other operators must pay auction fees for spectrum usage, said Dr Somkiat.

 Also, the contract could force the National Broadcasting and  Telecommunications Commission to lower the reserve price for the 3G  licensing auction, initially set at 13 billion baht.

 All money from the auction is earmarked as state revenue.

 Dr Somkiat also took exception to True's claim that the contracts  have been scrutinised by a dozen leading legal experts and financial  consultants, saying that most of these people worked for True or CAT.

 He also urged the Office of the Attorney-General to review the entire  investigation process to determine whether the OAG has done its duty  under the law that establishes the office.

 True said in a statement yesterday that its 80% of CAT's 3G network  capacity originated from the old Hutch-CAT contract. It is based on the  proportion of their subscribers and not a new benefit.


*SOMKIAT TANGKITVANICH* 
Vice Chairman, Thailand Development Research Institute

 True will have access to a free 3G network while the other operators must pay auction fees for spectrum usage.

  - The Hutch deal is a pseudo-concession.

  - The contract gives True the right to use 80% of CAT Telecom's 3G network, leaving 20% available to other operators.

  - The contract violates both the Spectrum Allocation Act and the Public-Private Joint Venture Act.

  - CAT Telecom should be entitled to revenue of 23.5 billion baht  over 14.5 years based on a wholesale margin of 35%, instead of 14  billion baht based on a margin of 23% as stipulated under the contract.

  - The contract means a loss of 39 billion baht in spectrum auction fees.



 
*SUPHACHAI CHEARAVANONT
*President and CEO, True Corp

 Dr Somkiat should not make public his views on the deal as long as  he does not have an in-depth knowledge of the contract details.

  - The Hutch deal is a natural business agreement under the new telecom regime.

  - The deal is clearly a win-win solution and has been approved by the attorney-general.

  - True simply acts as a 3G reseller under the contract, similar to the existing MVNO operators of TOT Plc.

  - The 3G spectrum is still owned by CAT Telecom, not True.



Writer: Srisamorn Phoosuphanusorn
Position: Business Reporter

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## SteveCM

*Thailand's telco tribulations | Business Report Thailand*

May 14, 2011 | 



In  around the middle of 2010, the stars became somewhat aligned so as to  enable some essential and long-awaited reforms in the telecom sector to  start to take shape. There had been a recent change in ICT Minister (now  a Democrat); pressure was on the State Owned Enterprises to start to  realise life without the life-saving mobile concession revenues, the 3G  auction was taking shape and most importantly a project had kicked off  to reform the out-dated, rent-seeking concession system. Dubbed K2 to  signify the scale of the challenge, it sought to deal with the mobile  concessions, fixed line concessions and lay the basis for a broadband  future. Too ambitious? In any event it stalled. Business Report Thailand  has covered these developments in its first issue.

 Back to where we left off.

 On 23 September 2010 the Supreme Administrative Court rejected the  NTCs appeal against the injunction issued by the Central Administrative  Court on grounds that although a 3G auction was in the public interest,  it had to be legitimate. The suit had been initiated by the management  of one State-Owned Enterprise (CAT). The effect of the appeal ruling was  that unless there was some judicial decision to the contrary, new  spectrum issuance (3G licensing) should not be expected until after the  new merged regulator  the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications  Commission (NBTC) was formed, which would first require passage of the  new Frequency legislation.

 Cabinet was stuck. The market wanted 3G; the industry wanted a level  playing field and proper industry structure. Should the former wait  again for the latter? In early October the Cabinet made a decision to  re-engage the SOEs by enabling TOT in particular to use the spectrum  held by the previous CAT-TOT joint venture (now TOT owned) Thai  Mobile. This would be done via five MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network  Operator) arrangements, to provide 3G mobile service. (The spectrum was  existing, already issued and did not require new issuance).   The MVNOs  were new entrants and did not have existing 2G services, so they would  have to rely on some kind of national roaming deal. Would AIS (the TOT  concessionaire) oblige? How was this SOE/MVNO arrangement a one for all  existing mobile operators given their large investment in their mobile  businesses and the reasonable expectation that they could move to newer  technology?
_
/cont........

[Quoting from BRT articles limited at their specific request - click link above for full article]_

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## StrontiumDog

*Bangkok Post : Court agrees to study True 3G contract
*
*Court agrees to study True 3G contract*
Published: 20/05/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: News
 The Central Administrative Court has accepted  for further deliberation Total Access Communication's complaint that CAT  Telecom's Jan14 board resolution granting 3G contracts to rival telecom  giant True Corp was illegitimate and had caused it damage.

 But the court rejected DTAC's request for an injunction to  temporarily suspend the contentious deal between CAT Telecom and True.

 DTAC, the country's second-largest mobile phone service provider, on  April25 filed the petition with the court, asking it to order CAT to  refrain from executing its obligations under six agreements related to  3G high-speed packet access (HSPA) mobile expansion until the  transaction details had been reviewed by relevant authorities.

 DTAC alleged that CAT failed to perform its duties when entering into  the contract with True and asked the court to issue an injunction to  suspend the deal.

 The court yesterday said it had no authority to intervene in the  signed agreement between CAT and True and could not order the  injunction.

 "However, if the plaintiff [DTAC] believes that the contract has  caused it damage, it can file a civil case to claim compensation within  the statute of limitations for the case," the court stated.

 The ruling paves the way for the six contracts between True and CAT to move forward without disruption.

 Jon Eddy Abdullah, chief executive officer of DTAC, declined to  comment yesterday and said the company would issue a statement today on  what its next step would be.

 CAT president Jirayuth Roongsrithong said the state enterprise would  continue conducting its business with True under the terms of the  contracts."We plan to start our 3G HSPA service in the third quarter,"  he said.

 Athueck Asvanont, vice-chairman of True, said the court's decision  not to impose the injunction would allow the company to proceed with its  3G service for the benefit of its customers.

 Somkiat Tangkitvanich, vice-chairman of the Thailand Development  Research Institute, earlier said that if the contracts were allowed to  stay in effect, they would adversely affect consumers and the industry.  He said the deal clearly fell under Section 5 of the Joint Venture Act  as it was a state enterprise investment project using spectrum  considered as a natural resource or government asset.

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## SteveCM

From the blog world.....
*

Thailand talks of revoking concessions | Telecom Asia*



*
Thailand talks of revoking concessions*

              May 20, 2011


                                  As if things were not complicated enough in Thailand, with  everyone suing everyone else in various courts, The Ministry of  Information and Communication Technology has dropped a bombshell on the  industry which could lead to renationalization of the entire mobile  telco space.

 MICT Permanent Secretary Jirawan Boonperm held a press conference on  the conclusion of talks between concession holders, state telcos CAT and  TOT, and their concessionaires, AIS, DTAC, TrueMove and also little  known DPC (now part of AIS) which collapsed after what she said were  useless statements made by CAT.

 The negotiations were centred on changes made to the concessions  approved by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatras Cabinet. The Supreme  Court has already found Thaksin guilty for policy changes that benefited  the companies that was owned by his family (and cook and driver). Among  these were changes to the telecom concessions AIS and others were  operating under, chiefly a reduction in prepaid revenue share from the  25% down to 20% and also, as highlighted by MICT, extensions of the  concession periods.

 The MICT Permanent Secretary said that she would forward her findings  to the Cabinet. If the cabinet agrees with the MICT that the Public  Private Joint Investment Act has been violated, the Cabinet can either  revoke the amendments or revoke the concessions entirely.

 However, both termination and cancellation of amendments will result  in the same thing. For instance, DTAC had its concession extended to  2018. Without the amendments, it would have expired last year.

 MICT has instructed TOT and CAT to come up with contingency plans to  take on the subscribers to ensured continued service if such a move does  happen in what would be one of the biggest telecom renationalizations  to hit the industry in modern times.

 Of course, there is a lot of room for appeal and further legal  battles before renationalization actually happens, and few, apart from  some die-hard bureaucrats, believe it would get that far.

 CAT for its part insisted in this round of talks that there was no  monetary damages stemming from the concession amendments, contradicting  earlier reports from its own internal committees.

 TOT has summarised damages from the concession amendments at 88.36  billion baht ($2.91 billion) that it believes AIS should pay up.

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## SteveCM

*Bangkok Post : True challenges DTAC nationality*

         Business          >         Telecommunications       

*True challenges DTAC nationality*

*Case underscores legal ambiguities* Published: 15/06/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: BusinessTrue Move yesterday filed a criminal complaint  against its bigger rival DTAC for having a foreign state enterprise as a  major shareholder, which it claims is a violation of the Foreign  Business Act.

 _True representative Suphasorn Honchaiya presents documents outlining  the companys claims at the Crime Suppression Division yesterday.  SURAPOL PROMSAKA NA SAKOLNAKORN_

 The case, filed with the Crime Suppression Division, underlines the  weakness of Thai law and ambiguity in rules and regulations, a main  deterrent to a healthy telecom regulatory environment, said industry  observers.

 They said the problem appears to have no solution and is not unique  to the telecom sector. However, raising the issue as a criminal case  could be seen as dampening the investment environment.

 True Move has no plan to file a complaint against Advanced Info  Service even though the mobile market leader also has a complicated  shareholding structure, said Athueck Asvanont, vice-chairman of parent  True Corporation.

 Jon Eddy Abdullah, the chief executive of DTAC, shrugged off the move  and said that should there be any change in regulations, DTAC was  willing to comply.

 Telenor Group of Norway, the major shareholder of DTAC, insisted that  its ownership was in compliance with Thai laws and regulations. Telenor  is 55% owned by the government of Norway.

 "DTAC is a SET-listed company, the ownership structure is publicly  available and registered with the Ministry of Commerce," Telenor said in  a statement yesterday.

 True Move has urged the Crime Suppression Division to launch a new  investigation into DTAC's nationality based on a report by the  Telecommunications Committee of the House of Representatives published  on April 21, according to Suphasorn Honchaiya, a representative of True  Move who filed the complaint.

 The report indicated that DTAC was a foreign entity by law since its  shareholding structure comprises only 28.65% Thai ownership while the  remaining 71.35% is held by foreigners or nominees.

 The report also said the foreign shareholding of DTAC as of May 20 had risen slightly to 71.98%.

 Moreover, Ms Suphasorn said that Telenor had reported to the stock  exchanges in Norway and Singapore that it owned approximately 66.5% in  the Thai operating unit.

 "This is clearly against Section 4 of the Foreign Business Act, which  expressly limits the ceiling of foreign shareholding to 49% for a Thai  telecom business in consideration of national security and the use of  airwaves, which are considered valuable and limited national assets,"  she said.

 However, Telenor said the report cited by True was still a draft that  needed further debate and approval by Parliament and other parties  involved.

 According to DTAC's shareholding breakdown filed with the Stock  Exchange of Thailand on May 13, Telenor Asia, a subsidiary of Telenor,  owns 41.04%, followed by Thai Telco Holdings, a 49%-owned affiliate of  Telenor Asia, with 15.03%.

 Telenor reiterated in its statement that it was fully committed to the future development of the Thai industry.

 "The group is supporting DTAC in its ambition to roll out 3G service  across Thailand for the benefit of the Thai telecom industry and  consumers," it said.

 "As a global mobile operator with operations in 11 markets, Telenor  is committed to high corporate governance standards, and always complies  with local rules and regulations in every market where it is present."

 Ms Suphasorn said True welcomed foreign investment. But it must be genuine and transparent in terms of information disclosure.

 "It is therefore necessary for DTAC to come out and openly declare  its ownership structure, instead of spreading its shares among nominee  individuals and companies to conceal its real nationality," she said,  adding that this had misled the public into believing that DTAC is a  Thai company.

 Mr Athueck said the petition was filed after the company's legal teams unanimously agreed that DTAC had violated the law.

 He rebutted the claim that the petition represented retaliation  against DTAC for filing a case with the Central Administrative Court  seeking to scrap the contentious deal between CAT Telecom and True  Corporation.

 Despite all the legal tussles, DTAC shares have gained 41% this year  against a 1% decline in the SET index. They closed yesterday at 60.25  baht, up 1.50 baht, in trade worth 680.14 million baht.


Writer: Komsan Tortermvasana
Position: Business Reporter

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## SteveCM

^ Doing business Thai-style - why bother to compete by providing a better or cheaper product or service when you can sue the foreign devils instead?  :mid:

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## SteveCM

*Bangkok Post : DBD: Dtac registered Thai firm

*         Breakingnews          >                
Published: 16/06/2011 at 12:52 PMOnline news: Telecommunications
Total Access Communication (Dtac) is a Thai  company, director-general of the Department of Business Development  (DBD) Banyong Limprayoonwong said on Thursday.

 Citing the companys registration and shareholding structure  documents, Mr Banyong said Thais hold 51% of Dtac and the remaining 49%  is foreign owned.

 The director-general said that True Move will this afternoon hand  over to his department the documents it claimed to have derived from an  in-depth check which concluded that 71.35% of Dtac shares are  held by  foreigners and only 28.65% by Thais.

  Mr Banyong said the documents would be examined. If it were found  that Dtac really has foreign majority shareholders it would be  reclassified as a foreign firm.

 If it is so, there would be tracing  to see whether Dtac had applied  to the DBD for permission to run a telecommunication business .  Telecommunication is included in the No 3 list attached to the Foreign  Business Act and a foreign firm is required to seek permission from the  department prior to starting a business, he added.

 If Dtac had failed to do so, the penalty would be a fine of between  100,000 baht and one million baht and/or a jail term of no more than  three years.

 True Move on Tuesday filed a complaint with the Crime Suppression  Division against its bigger rival Dtac, alleging it had a foreign  majority shareholder in breach of the law.

 The company asked the Crime Suppression Division to launch a new  investigation into DTAC's state ownership based on evidence published by  Telecommunications Committee of the House of Representatives on April  21.

 The report indicated that DTAC is a foreign entity by law since its  shareholding structure comprises only 28.65% Thai ownership with the  remaining 71.35% owned by foreigners.

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## lom

Some related info twitted earlier:
* 
MICT to prosecute those involved with telecom concession amendments*
By Don Sambandaraksa
  May 2, 2011*Posted in:* Public Policy, Telecommunications


ICT Minister Chuti Krairiksh is reported to ask the final meeting of  the Cabinet to go ahead with an investigation and prosecution of those  involved in regards to the telecoms concession amendments.

 Quoting an unnamed source within the ICT Ministry, Nations Thai  language sister publication Krungthep Turakij (Bangkok Biz News) today ran a story  reporting that the investigation will focus on the changes to the  telecoms concessions, in particular the introduction of excise tax, and  changes to the satellite concession that benefitted Shin Corp.
 The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) will be bought in to look at the financial aspects of the deals.
 On 25 February this year, the ICT Minister set up a committee headed  by Counter Corruption Commissioner Ampol Wongsiri to investigate six  matters.
 1. Amendments made to six different contracts relating to AIS and  ThaiCom, namely the decision that excise tax could be deducted from  revenue used to calculate revenue share.
 2. The reduction of pre-paid revenue share down to 20 percent.
 3. Amendments that allowed roaming profit (as opposed to revenue) to be used to calculate revenue share.
 4. Investment promotion privileges given to Shin Satellite, which is  by contract supposed to be focused on domestic satellite services.
 5. Reduction of Shin Corporations stake in ThaiCom down to 40 percent while it was supposed to be maintained above 51 percent.
 6. Approval of the insurance payout directly to Shinsat for the failure of ThaiCom 3 to the tune of 6,700 million US  Dollars.
 The committee has concluded that a large number of civil servants  within the MICT and its state enterprises acted to benefit Shin Corp. It  also noted that many of those involved have since retired or resigned  from their posts.
 Damage from the decisions is expected to be in the tens of billions of Baht.
 The report has categorised those to be investigated into six groups.
 1. Politicians  Thaksin Shinawatra Prime Minister, Somkit  Jatusripitak Finance Minister, Wan Muhamad Nor Matha Transport and  Communications Minister (the precursor to MICT), Surapong Suebwonglee  ICT Minister.
 2. Civil servants, namely Satit Limpongpan, Director General of the  Excise Department who put forward the amendments to the excise tax;  Srisuk Chantarangsuk, Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Transport  and Communications; Areepong Puchaum, Director General of the State  Enterprise Policy Office; Sirinuch Pisonyabutr, Deputy Director General  of the Excise Department; Dhipavadee Meksawan, Permanent Secretary of  MICT and Kraisorn Pornsutee, Permanent Secretary of MICT.
 3. Key TOT and CAT officials.
 4. Key TOT and CAT board members.
 5. AIS and Shinsat (the companies).
 6. Key AIS and Shinsat executives by name

----------


## lom

*Dtac vs CAT (and True), blow by blow*

By Don Sambandaraksa
  May 11, 2011*Posted in:* Public Policy, Telecommunications

_A number of Thai newspapers have today been reporting the first  blows of the lawsuit Dtac has launched against CAT Telecom, blow by  blow._ 
_Earlier Total Access Communication (Dtac) filed a lawsuit in the  administrative court against its concession holder CAT Telecom asking  for a temporary injunction to the CAT- 3G TrueMove deal claiming that it  broke both the Frequency Allocation Act and the Public Private Joint  Investment Act._
_My own thoughts after reading this? Its a mess, and it is clear  that Cat and Trues key strategy in arguing is by holding consumers  hostage rather than address the points which Dtac actually sued CAT  over. But judge for yourself._

_Krungthep Turakit (Bangkok Biz News) ran a report today that can be loosely translated as follows._
 Dtacs team consisted of Mrs Veranuch Kamonyabutr, Senior Director  for legal affairs and a legal team. CAT was represented by CAT CEO  Jirayut Rungsrithong and Hansa Chewapreuck, vice-president for legal  affairs.
 True also attended with True vice-chairman Athueck Asavanont attending personally.
 The session started off with the judge asking CAT why the deal was  not processed in accordance with the Public Private Joint Investment  Act.
 Hansa replied that it [the MVNO contract with RealMove, a new 3G arm  of TrueMove] was just a marketing contract while the contract with BFKT  (now taken over by TrueMove) was just an equipment leasing contract.
 He said that while the Council of State may have ruled that the Hutch  contract does fall under the Public Private Joint Investment Act  article 13, CAT has taken over ownership of Hutch, therefore the  committee under the PPJV act no longer is relevant.
_(No, that does not make much sense to me either, but Im just translating.)_
 The court asked CAT why it should not grant an injunction. CAT gave six reasons.
 1. It would damage CAT and CATs contractor (True, via BFKT) which  has already signed purchase orders for equipment and has taken out  loans.
 2. CAT will not be able to provide telecommunication services which will affect income by over 10 billion Baht.
 3. CAT will not be able to offer advanced services which will affect the general public.
 4. CAT will be forced to cease its universal service obligations.
 5. CAT will not be able to run a 3G network even though it legally  has spectrum before the NTC (National Telecommunications Commission) was  established.
 6. Thai people will not have 3G and the 1.2 million Hutch subscribers will be cut off.
 Dtac responded by saying that 1. The contract between CAT and True  was illegal. 2. The injunction would not inconvenience Hutch Subscribers  and would actually help them as the old Hutch contract had five years  to run, but the CAT-True deal would see the Hutch network shut down in  two years. 3. CAT already has a 3G network on CDMA EV-DO. 4. State  enterprises much be economically viable in themselves, not depend on  concession revenue share to survive, hence the 10 billion Baht deficit  should not be considered. 5. An injunction would not affect CAT as it  has not invested in anything yet.
 Dtac said that the court should focus on whether the agreement was legal or not rather than anything else.
 Jirayut responded by saying that CATs CDMA operations were limited  and not as popular as GSM and that the company lacked foreign funds.
 He asked Dtac that if they were so opposed to CDMA, why did they ask to go commercial on HSPA themselves? (_Either the reporter got their notes mixed up here or Jirayut has no idea what hes talking about._)
 He also refuted Dtacs claim that the 1.2 million Hutch subscribers  would not be affected as the previous contract with Hutch was terminated  on 27 January when the contract between CAT and True was signed.
 Tach Busadeekarn, Director for legal affairs at True, asked to give  evidence. Dtac objected saying that True was not named in the lawsuit.  True countered that it was a witness authorised by CAT and then asked  all the public to leave the room as it would be confidential  information.
 The judge allowed True to take the stand but also said the public and reporters could stay.
 Tach said that True would be affected by the injunction as it had  already borrowed 6,300 million Baht in a short-term loan from SCB at an  interest rate of 50 million Baht a month. True would have to return  6,600 million Baht if the injunction were granted.
 He also said that a further loan of 49 billion Baht from a consortium  of banks (SCB, KTB, BAY, Tisco, GSB, Thanachart and ExIm Bank) which  was due to be signed off soon.
 True has already spent 3,300 million Baht on upgrading existing infrastructure to make it 3G (_again, a bit unclear if its EV-DO or HSPA_) and has invested 215 million Baht in a new billing system.
 True claimed that an injunction order would be illegal and break  article 20 of the Frequency Allocation Act that states that services  must be stable and must not stop in a way that will affect the public.
 Tach said an injunction would immediately cost CAT between 2-3  billion Baht, Hutch 158 million, BFKT 923 million and mean that the 1.2  million CDMA users can no longer use their phones to call any of the  other 75 million phones in the country.
 Dtac objected saying that True had no right to answer these questions  for CAT and questioned how True had such detailed information on what  should be a CAT internal matter. Dtac questioned why CAT had not raised  these points itself.
 Dtac suggested that the reason was because True was the one calling  the shots and who drafted the contracts for CAT and is deeply involved  at all levels, doing everything for CAT.
 Dtac again objected at the testimony from True, saying that Dtac had  not sued True and that business profit and loss has nothing to do with  the matters of law on which Dtac is suing CAT.

----------


## SteveCM

*Bangkok Post : True presses for scrapping of DTAC licence*Published: 22/06/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: BusinessTrue Move opened another front yesterday in its  increasingly bitter feud with rival DTAC, asking the country's telecom  regulator to revoke the latter's right to operate a mobile business in  Thailand.

 The third-ranked mobile operator wants the acting National  Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) to lift the  licence of second-ranked DTAC on grounds that it is majority owned by  foreigners, specifically the Norwegian state telecom enterprise Telenor  and its allies.

 However, the NBTC said there was little it could do as DTAC was not  its direct licensee. It said it needed to rely on the Foreign Business  Act (FBA), which is overseen by the Commerce Ministry.

 CAT Telecom holds the DTAC concession, which is due to expire in 2018.

 Suphasorn Honchaiya, True's representative, said DTAC clearly  violated Section 8 of the Telecom Business Act 2001, which expressly  states that only Thai companies can operate telecom businesses. It sets a  maximum foreign shareholding in such businesses at 49%. The company is  also in breach of Section 84 of the 2007 Constitution, she added.

 DTAC executives have denied the claims by True and say the company was in compliance with all local laws.

 True Move is scheduled to give a statement to police at the Crime Suppression Division this week.

 True Move on June 14 filed a criminal complaint alleging that DTAC  had a foreign state enterprise as a major shareholder, based on a report  that 71.35% of DTAC's shares were held by foreigners or their nominees.

 The Department of Business Development at the Commerce Ministry has  said that DTAC was still in compliance with the law, based on its  initial examination. However, the Commerce Ministry this week set up a  new panel to review DTAC's shareholding structure. The panel is  scheduled to report its findings within the next 10 days.

 Thakorn Tantasit, the secretary of the acting NBTC, said it was too  early to comment on DTAC's shareholding and that the regulator needed to  discuss the issue with the Commerce Ministry.

 Mr Thakorn said the issue would be tabled for discussion at an NBTC  board meeting tomorrow for acknowledgement. But he admitted that any  decision could take time as it was a delicate issue.

 TRUE shares closed yesterday on the Stock Exchange of Thailand at  3.88 baht, down six satang, in trade worth 281.4 million baht. DTAC  shares were unchanged at 56.25 baht, in trade worth 464.3 million baht.


Writer: Komsan Tortermvasana
Position: Business Reporter

----------


## SteveCM

*Bangkok Post : DTAC row heats up*

*DTAC row heats up*

*Claims of ministry conflict downplayed* 
Published: 28/06/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: BusinessPolitical lobbying has been heavy in the closely  watched investigation of the nationality of the No.2 mobile operator  Total Access Communication (DTAC).

 Banyong Limprayoonwong, director-general of the Business Development  Department, said he and other technocrats were "uncomfortable" with the  political manoeuvring surrounding the investigation.

 He claimed yesterday that Sanya Sathirabutr, a political adviser to  acting Deputy Commerce Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot, had made several  direct attempts to influence the investigation.

 Mr Alongkorn was unavailable for comment yesterday.

 Speaking at a briefing, Mr Banyong denied reports of two separate  committees responsible for the DTAC investigation - one chaired by Mr  Sanya and the other by himself.

 He said only one committee, which he chairs, existed and it was set  up by Yanyong Phuangrach, the permanent secretary of the Commerce  Ministry.

 Mr Banyong said he believed the misleading reports of a conflict  within the Commerce Ministry stemmed from Mr Sanya earlier lobbying to  be named as the committee chairman.

 He told the briefing that he disagreed with such a move, as Mr Sanya  was a political appointee, while the investigation should be run by  ministry officials and technocrats from related agencies.

 Mr Banyong claimed Mr Sanya later asked that a different adviser to Mr Alongkorn be appointed to the committee.

 Mr Sanya also allegedly told Mr Banyong the Commerce Ministry  investigation was superfluous, as a separate panel scrutinising the  issue on behalf of the House telecommunications committee already  concluded DTAC is in violation of the Foreign Business Act (FBA) through  the use of nominees.

 Mr Banyong said he informed Mr Sanya that the House investigation was  not binding, as the Business Development Department, which is  responsible for corporate registrations, did not play a role.

 "All of this has made both myself and other officials quite  uncomfortable. We've reported what's been going on to the permanent  secretary [Mr Yanyong]," he said.

 Mr Banyong said the permanent secretary had also informed acting  Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai and Mr Alongkorn about the creation  of the ministry panel and that neither of them had voiced any complaint.

 The panel expects to submit its report to Mrs Porntiva next Monday.

 True Move, Thailand's third-largest mobile operator, earlier this  month filed a criminal complaint accusing DTAC of being in violation of  the FBA, which restricts foreign ownership to 49%.

 The Stock Exchange of Thailand reported that as of May 13, Telenor  Asia, a unit of Norway's Telenor, held a 41.04% stake in DTAC.

 Thai Telco Holdings was the second-largest shareholder at 15.03%, followed by Thai NVDR at 12.55%.

 But True Move alleges foreign shareholding in DTAC actually totals 71.35% if nominees are counted.

 Telenor's own interim first-quarter financial statement pegged the group's "economic stake" in DTAC at 65.5% as of March 31.

 If DTAC is found to have violated the FBA, the company could be  forced to change its shareholding structure to bring foreign holdings  below the 49% threshold.

 A similar investigation by the Commerce Ministry into nominee  structures that was launched during the Surayud Chulanont administration  proved highly disruptive to foreign investment sentiment.

 Although illegal, nominee structures have long been used as mechanisms for foreign multinational companies operating locally.

 Jon Eddy Abdullah, DTAC's chief executive, said his company stood  ready to comply with local laws and regulations based on any rulings.


Writer: Phusadee Arunmas
Position: Business Reporter

----------


## SteveCM

*Bangkok Post : Finger-pointing in DTAC case continues*

*Finger-pointing in DTAC case continues*
Published: 29/06/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: BusinesThe closely watched investigation into the  nationality of second-ranked mobile operator DTAC is turning into an  intensifying conflict between technocrats and politicians.

 Sanya Sathirabutr, a political adviser to acting Deputy Commerce  Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot, yesterday dismissed a claim that he had  tried to intervene in the investigation process in favour of any  particular private company.

 He also said that Banyong Limprayoonwong, director-general of the  ministry's Business Development Department, had failed to do his duty.Mr  Banyong on Monday claimed that Mr Sanya had made direct attempts to  influence the investigation. He said he and other technocrats were  uncomfortable with the political manoeuvring.

 True Move, the country's third-largest mobile operator, earlier this  month filed a criminal complaint accusing DTAC of being in violation of  the Foreign Business Act (FBA), which caps foreign ownership in telecom  companies at 49%.

 SET data showed that as of May 13, Telenor Asia, a unit of Norway's Telenor, held a 41.04% stake in DTAC.

 But True Move alleges the foreign shareholding in DTAC actually totals 71.35% if nominees are counted.

 Mr Sanya said he proposed that the committee responsible for the DTAC  investigation, chaired by Mr Banyong, use the conclusions of a panel  scrutinising the DTAC issue on behalf of the House Telecommunications  Committee as the basis for further investigation.

 The panel concluded DTAC breached the FBA through the use of nominees.

 "We never intended to lobby the investigation. What Mr Banyong claimed is false," he told the Bangkok Post.

 Mr Sanya is scheduled to return from China tomorrow. "I have all the evidence on hand to explain at a press conference."

 He said he had been assigned by Mr Alongkorn to head the committee  instead of Mr Banyong in order to push the investigation forward.

 "Under Section 30 of FBA, we are allowed to seek information from both DTAC and True Move for investigation," he said.

 "As a political adviser, I see no reason why I should not be  appointed as a political appointee for the committee's head for double  check."

 Mr Sanya also claimed that he in fact had been appointed by Mr  Alongkorn to head the committee before Mr Banyong proposed himself to  the ministry's permanent secretary Yanyong Phuangrach.

 Mr Yanyong, meanwhile, insisted the ministry made the right decision,  saying the investigation should be run by permanent public servants.


Writer: Komsan Tortermvasana and Phusadee Arunmas

----------


## SteveCM

*Bangkok Post : Commerce agency defies Alongkorn's ultimatum*

TELECOMMUNICATIONS 
*Commerce agency defies Alongkorn's ultimatum* Published: 20/07/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: BusinessCivil servants at the Commerce Ministry are  adamant about refusing to take legal action against DTAC as their acting  deputy minister has demanded, reiterating more evidence is necessary  before deciding on the mobile operator's nationality.

 _Banyong Limprayoonwong (right), director-general of the Business  Development Department, explains why he is turning the DTAC nationality  case over to police rather than filing a suit._

 The refusal of the ministry's Business Development Department to act  defies a demand by acting deputy commerce minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot  to take legal action against DTAC for allegedly using Thai nominees to  hold shares on behalf of foreigners.

 The allegation was made by the third-ranked mobile operator True Move, which filed a complaint with the police last month.

 Mr Alongkorn appears determined to sort out the case before he leaves  office. Earlier he threatened a misconduct investigation against  Banyong Limprayoonwong, director-general of the Business Development  Department, if he failed to comply with his order.

 Mr Banyong insisted yesterday that the investigative committee, which  he chaired, remained resolute in its initial agreement to pass the DTAC  case to the police for further scrutiny to determine if any laws had  been broken.

 "Despite our preliminary finding that seven Thai nominees held shares  on behalf of foreigners in DTAC, there was not enough evidence to make a  clear legal conclusion," he said. "Mr Alongkorn has no authority to  order a petition against the mobile operator."

 The Foreign Business Act states that permanent civil servants and  officials can make an independent inquiry into foreign shareholding.

 "We have no double standard with the DTAC case. We just want to make  sure correct practices and fair play are used, rather than worry about  my boss's feelings," he said.

 Mr Banyong said he sent the case to the Royal Thai Police last  Tuesday. On Thursday, the department submitted a letter to Mr Alongkorn  and acting commerce minister Porntiva Nakasai explaining why it could  not comply with the order.

 Mr Banyong said the police investigation would not take long. If a  law has been broken, a case would proceed through three levels of  courts.

 The police need to scrutinise two issues: the sources of overseas  funding for the alleged nominee companies, and the high amount of call  loans at zero interest with no specified maturity period.

 Mr Alongkorn said yesterday he had not read Mr Banyong's letter.


Writer: Phusadee Arunmas
Position: Business Reporter

----------


## SteveCM

^*
Optimist's view* 

A rare illustration that there at least _some_ Thai civil servants who aren't automatons just doing the agenda-driven bidding of their current political masters - common sense rules.

*
Pessimist's view* 

Alongkorn is just an _acting deputy_ minister - the lowest form of ministerial life..... Oh, _and_ he'll be gone next month. Like any grown-up Thai bureaucrat, eyes are already on who's due to be the new boss and what _they_ will want - self-preservation rules.


Take your pick.

----------


## StrontiumDog

*Bangkok Post : DSI probes selections for broadcasting regulator
*
*DSI probes selections for broadcasting regulator*
Published:  5/08/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: News
 The Department of Special Investigation is  probing claims that candidates for the National Broadcasting and  Telecommunications Commission were selected illegitimately.

 DSI director-general Tharit Pengdit said yesterday his department was  looking into the complaints and would report results to the Senate,  which has to vet and select the NBTC members, in 1-2 weeks.

 Witnesses' accounts pointed to wrongdoing, he said.

 The complaints include allegations that some selection panel members and candidates they selected were related.

 Some members representing people's groups were also thought to have come from dubious organisations.

 Mr Tharit said complaints about possible conflicts of interest had  also arisen. Some NBTC candidates were accused of being involved in the  drafting of a law governing allocation of radio frequencies.

 Other candidates were accused of applying for candidacy through more  than one channel, to increase their chances of being selected.

 Some candidates were also directors of state enterprises, which  contravenes selection rules, while others have been accused of holding  degrees in fields unrelated to the posts they were seeking.

 Some ballots cast by committee members may also have been destroyed, he said. The Senate will select the 11 members of the NBTC.

 If collusion existed in the selection process, it would be damaging to the public interest.

 The NBTC will serve as a regulatory body for the country's broadcasting and telecommunications industry.

 Mr Tharit said the DSI would propose selection cases for such agencies be handled as special cases under its jurisdiction.

 Forty-four applicants were selected as candidates.

 Somchai Sawaengkan, chairman of the National Human Rights Commission,  said the Senate would convene on Monday and set up a 25-member  committee to check the profiles of the 44 candidates chosen.

 He expects the Senate to vote for the 11 members of the NBTC on Sept 5.

 The deadline for the Senate to select the 11 NBTC members is Sept 11.

 If the Senate fails to meet the deadline, the authority to choose NBTC members will shift to the prime minister and the cabinet.

----------


## SteveCM

*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.

----------


## StrontiumDog

Thai-ASEAN News Network



Stop Disruption to NBTC Establishment 

UPDATE : 22 August 2011                     *

Could there be some kind of jinx at work  so as the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission has  not yet been officially established? First, a petition had been filed  with the Administrative Court to disrupt the selection process. Now,  similar attempts are still being made against the fact that a judicial  complaint cannot hinder the selection process that is currently in the  final stage.

Actually, the problem hasn't been caused by any higher powers. It is  simply about a certain group of people who are afraid that others are  getting on their turf and who wants to keep all the wealth generated  from communication frequencies to themselves.* 

The filing of lawsuits by disqualified candidates, Department of Special  Investigation Director-General Tharit Pengdit's negative reaction  towards those involved the selection process as if they were criminals,  and attempts to delay the selection process until it changes hand to the  Cabinet, are all indicative of less than honest motives behind them.

A network of media organizations and ten civic organizations led by the  National Press Council of Thailand has recently issued a statement  clarifying how important a legitimate selection of NBTC commissioners  is.

One section of the statement wrote that there were attempts to forestall  the selection of NBTC commissioners by either lawful or unlawful means,  such as the filing of complaints from an individual who works for a  political party, the use of an investigative tool to intimidate  concerned individuals and media, release of advertisements hinting at  the illegitimate status of the NBTC.

Regardless of the Central Administrative Court's decision in the hearing  of the case in which NBTC candidate Suranant Wongwittayakamjorn sued  the selection committee and its chairman Jarurong Panyadilok, the  selection has been lawfully carried out and must be continued until it  is complete.

*Editorial, Kom Chad Luek, Page 4, August 22nd, 2011
Translated and rewritten by Wacharapol Isaranont*

----------


## StrontiumDog

*Bangkok Post : NBTC shakes off birth pains
*
*NBTC shakes off birth pains*

*SPECIAL REPORT: After a 14 year wait,  the broadcast and telecoms regulator  will be unveiled today*
Published:  5/09/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: News
 Fourteen years in the making, the National  Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission will be unveiled today  when the Senate elects its 11 members.

 
Suthipol and Supinya: Among the finalists

 The commission is beginning its first chapter but the path ahead appears to be strewn with obstacles.

 Removing broadcast frequencies long held by the state and businesses for redistribution could prove particularly daunting.

 The NBTC is also closely bound by the constitution. If the  powers-that-be feel their interests are threatened by the commission, it  could work to sink it by means of a charter amendment.

 However, the NBTC's inception today is historic as it culminates in  years of efforts under successive governments to set up a broadcast and  telecommunication regulator.

 The establishment of the commission comes 14 years late. It should  have been up and running with the promulgation of the 1997 constitution.

 Getting the commission off the ground has been a frustrating process  involving fierce debates and interference from businesses and political  elements.

 Originally, there were to be separate agencies; the National  Broadcasting Commission and the National Telecommunication Commission.

 Only the NTC was established, while the NBC was never formed as selection of commissioners ended in a stalemate.

 The current constitution combines the NBC and the NTC together to  create the NBTC, comprising 11 commissioners. Today each senator will  choose 11 commissioners from among the 44 shortlisted finalists in eight  categories.

 The Senate will vote for one commissioner from four finalists in the  field of radio broadcasting; one commissioner from the four finalists  from the field of television; two commissioners from eight finalists in  the telecom sector; two commissioners from eight finalists who are legal  experts; two commissioners from eight finalists in economics; one  commissioner from four finalists in rights and freedom promotion and  consumer protection; one commissioner from four finalists in consumer  protection advocacy in the telecommunications industry; and one  commissioner from four finalists in the field of education, culture and  social development.

 Other strong finalists include Election Commission secretary-general  Suthipol Thaweechaiygarn, Campaign for Popular Media Reform  vice-chairwoman Supinya Klangnarong, former Mass Communication  Organisation of Thailand director Wasant Paileeklee and former senator  and health activist Jon Ungpakorn. The NBTC members have a six-year,  non-renewable term.

 A Senate source said government politicians were lobbying to senators  to pick people who are friendly to their broadcast and telecom  businesses.

 ACM Thares Punsri, former deputy defence permanent secretary, is  competing with Lucksamee Srisompet, another contender, for a seat in the  radio broadcast segment.

 The source said if ACM Thares makes the cut, he will stand a good chance of being chosen the NBTC chairman.

 He does not come under the influence of the government while Ms  Lucksamee, the vice-president of Chiang Mai's Chamber of Commerce,  receives solid support from many senators, according to the source.

 Once the 11 commissioners are elected, they must convene a meeting in  15 days to select a chairman and two deputies from among themselves.

 The NBTC's main task is to draft a master plan on broadcast frequency  management, which will be put up for referendum before being  implemented.

 The plan governs a redistribution of broadcast and telecommunication  frequencies, with the exception of those bound by concessions not yet  expired or those specified by the constitution as off-limits to the  NBTC.

 Also, where concessions expire, at least 20% of frequencies that  become available must be allocated to the people. The commission will  also issue radio, television and telecom licences as well as the licence  for the 3G service.

 Overall, the NBTC's job is to develop the broadcast and telecom  industries with the intention to make the frequencies a national asset  to be allocated for public benefits.

----------


## StrontiumDog

*Bangkok Post : Senate finally elects NBTC members
*
*Senate finally elects NBTC members*
Published:  5/09/2011 at 06:11 PMOnline news: Telecommunications
 The Senate elected the 11 members of the  National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC) on Monday,  ending a 14-year saga of legislative indifference and political and  business interference.
 The Senate, by secret ballot, chose the following 11 commissioners from the list of 44 finalists:

 
_The Senate finally elects the 11 members of the long-delayed National  Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission - ending a 14-year saga.  (Photo by Thiti Wannamontha)_

 1. Col Natee Sukolrat, from the telecom sector

2. Election Commission secretary-general Suthiphon Thaveechaiyagarn, from the legal sector

3. Pol Col Taweesak Ngamsanga, from the legal sector

4. Col Settapong Malisuwan, from the telecom sector

5. ACM Thares Punsri, from the field of television

6. Peerapong Manakit, from the field of television

7. Prasert Silpipat, in economics

8. Thawatchai Jittrapanun, in economics

9.  Campaign for Popular Media Reform vice chairwoman Supinya Klanarong  (representing the field of rights and freedom promotion and consumer  protection)

10. Prawit Leesatapornwongs (consumer protection advocacy in the telecommunications industry)

11. Col Sukit Khamasunthorn (education, culture and social development).

 The NBTC members have a six-year, non-renewable term. They will later elect a commission chairman and two deputy chairmen.

 The final line up will then be submitted to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who will send it for formal royal endorsement.

 As the Senate meeting began today,  a request  to delay the selection of the NBTC members was rejected.

 Si Sa Ket senator Chittipot Wiriyarot told the Senate meeting this  morning that the NBTC's selection process was flawed with alleged  irregularities.

 He asked the Senate to investigate them before voting on the membership of the new broadcasting regulator.

 Senate Speaker Theeradej Meepian rejected Mr Chittipot’s request,  saying that the period for considering complaints had already passed and  the senators scheduled to consider the qualifications of 44 finalists  before casting secret ballots today.

 The selection of NBTC to regulate and redistribute broadcasting and  telecommunication frequencies has floundered from one setback to  another in the 14 years since the new regulator was first mandated by  the 1997 constitution, amid legislative lethargy, strong criticism  of the selection process and alleged interference by businessmen and  politicians.

 Senator Somchai Sawaengkarn, spokesman for the Senate panel checking  the qualifications of the finalists, insisted most senators did not want  to see any further delay because they had found no problems with the  selection process.

----------


## StrontiumDog

*Bangkok Post : NBTC selections fail to impress
*
*NBTC selections fail to impress*

*Military, police ranks fill 6 of 11 positions * 
Published:  6/09/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: NewsThe Senate came under fire yesterday after the  line-up of the long-awaited National Broadcasting and Telecommunications  Commission was unveiled.



 Senators met in the early hours of yesterday to choose the new panel by secret vote.

 Of the 11 proposed members of the broadcasting and telecom watchdog,  five of them have a military title and another is a former police  superintendent.

 Civil Media Development Institute chairwoman Uajit Wirotetrairat questioned the senators' rationale in their voting decisions.

 Many of the candidates did not meet the requirement that the  commissioners must have relevant expertise and achievements in the  sector, she said.

 She made an exception for commissioners-elect from the fields of non-governmental organisations, and legal experts.

 "The outcome seems to show that military and police ranks mattered  when senators made decisions although they should have adhered to  fairness, and experience.

 "In the past selection of the NTC [National Telecommunications  Commission], the presence of those in uniforms was not so obvious.

 "This is like going back to the period before the establishment of TV  Channel 5," Mrs Uajit said. She challenged the NBTC to prove it is  really independent, transparent and fair.

 A senator who asked not to be named said former executives of the  disbanded Thai Rak Thai Party, who were influential in the North and the  Northeast, lobbied heavily for three commissioners-elect.



 "I am concerned that the Senate has so many people who did not make decisions based on the national interest.

 "They voted for three persons, whose stances and capabilities are doubtful, for important positions."

 ACM Thares Punsri, the winning candidate in the field of broadcasting, won the highest vote of 73.

 The former chief of military staff of the Royal Thai Air Force  studied at the Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School in the same  Class 6 as ACM Chalit Phukpasuk and ACM Chalee Ruangchan. ACM Thares is  executive chairman of the Defence Technology Institute. ACM Chalit, a  former air force chief, is now a member of the Privy Council and ACM  Chalee is a senator.

 Lt Gen Peerapong Manakit of Nation University _ formerly Yonok  University _ who was selected in the field of television affairs, won 62  votes. He is seen as close to Yaowapa Wongsawat, an elder sister of  Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.

 Col Nathee Sukolrat won selection in the telecommunication business category with 112 votes.

 He is a former member of the NTC and a former acting president of TOT Plc.

 Another wining candidate in this category was Col Setthapong  Malisuwan, who is now a military officer with the Defence Ministry's  office of broadcasting, television and telecommunication affairs.

 Gen Sukij Kamasunthorn, who won the selection in the field of social  development is said to have close connections with Advanced Info  Service.

 Pol Col Thaweesak Ngamsanga, the winning candidate in the field of  law, is said to have close ties with Phinij Jarusombat, a veteran  politician who is a key figure of Chart Pattana Puea Pandin.

 Thailand Development Research Institute vice-president Somkiat Tangkitvanich said the line-up did not measure up.

 "The line-up is not quite beautiful. There are too many soldiers. I will wait and see how they work," he said.

 He urged the NBTC to quickly work out a master plan on the  liberalisation of telecommunications and digital radio and television,  as he thinks Thailand is way behind other countries in these fields.

 The 11 NBTC members were selected out of 44 shortlisted candidates by  means of a secret vote that took place at 12.45am and took about three  hours to finish.

 The vote began right after a closed-door meeting lasting about 45 minutes.

 A total of 147 out all 149 senators took part in the secret vote.

 Each of them were given eight ballots in different colours to cast their votes in eight categories.

 The commissioners comprise one from radio broadcasting, one from  television broadcasting, two from the telecom sector, two from the legal  field, two from economics, one from rights, freedom and consumer  protection, one from consumer protection advocacy in the telecom  industry, and one from social, culture and education development. The  Senate speaker will send the list to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra  and the premier will forward it to His Majesty the King for endorsement.

 The NBTC has a six-year tenure but the age for members is capped at 70.

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## StrontiumDog

*Bangkok Post : New NBTC faces minefield of legal issues
*
*New NBTC faces minefield of legal issues*
Published:  6/09/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: Business
 The successful creation of the National  Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC) is just the  beginning of an ''eventual disaster'' with legal difficulties and  disputes lying ahead, say telecom experts.

 The main threat is based on the fact that the commission combines the  national broadcasting regulator and the national telecommunications  regulator to create the NBTC, comprising 11 commissioners.

 By law, the commission's regulating structure was improper because it  was totally separated, said Anuparb Thiralarp, a telecom academic.

 In the convergence era, he said an application could run through many devices on the same frequency.

 ''We might enjoy a honeymoon period in the first six months after the  broadcast and telecommunications regulator was successfully  established,'' Mr Anuparb said.

 ''After that, the industry will face with the realilty and probably a disaster,'' he predicted.

 He said there are three main tasks facing the NBTC.

 First is a management timetable for the national radio frequency, a  model for managing all telecoms frequencies including radio and  broadcasting in the future.

 Second is the reform of existing spectrum, particularly with regards  to those of government agencies, the armed forces and state enterprises  holding excessive slots of frequencies.

 Third is the auctioning of the much-awaited 3G licences on the 2100-megahertz frequency.

 Mr Anuparb said the NBTC should work closely with the government to  amend the details of the NBTC Act, notably its impractical vertical  management structure, which required the establishment of separate  subcommittees for telecom and broadcasting.

 He said the commission should apply a horizontal structure to  specially manage and regulate network and spectrum issues; licensees  should instead be allowed to take responsibility for services and  applications by themselves because of convergence ties.

 Wichian Mektrakarn, the chief executive of Advanced Info Service,  said private mobile operators are pinning their hopes on a 3G licence  auction of the international-standard 2.1-gigahertz spectrum along with  promotion of a level playing field for all operators in the Thai telecom  industry.

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## StrontiumDog

*Bangkok Post : Chalerm proposes delaying NBTC's start up
*
*Chalerm proposes delaying NBTC's start up*
Published:  7/09/2011 at 06:07 PMOnline news: Politics
 The list of 11 members selected to serve on the  National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) should  not be forwarded yet for His Majesty the King's formal approval, Deputy  Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung said on Wednesday.

 
_Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung (Photo by Kitja Apichonrojarek)_

 He said it should be put on hold since the Department of Special  Investigation (DSI) has been assigned to investigate alleged  irregularities in the selection of NBTC candidates as a special case.

The people should know whether the allegations are true, he said.

Mr Chalerm said he would ask Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to delay forwarding the list to the King.

Appointed senator Somchai Sawaengkarn thought otherwise.

Mr  Somchai said if the prime minister delayed forwarding the list, it  would mean another long delay until the long-awaited NBTC could start to  function.

This would affect development of the country's telecommunications sector.

He said the prime minister might also be subject to scrutiny by the Senate and society.

DSI  director-general Tharit Pengdit, who announced the investigation this  morning, said if the selection committee was found to be at fault the  entire selection process would have to start over again.

 
_Department of Special Investigation director-general Tharit Pengdit (Photo by Tawatchai Kemgumnerd)_

 Mr Tharit said that under the law the authority to select members of  the NBTC rests with the prime minister only if the Senate fails to  complete the job in 180 days. In this case, the Senate had finished the  job.

He said the DSI's investigation would look into alleged  irregularities, and would have nothing to do with the 11 NBTC members  who have already been elected by the Senate.

Mr Tharit said a  meeting of the special cases committee chaired by Deputy Prime Minister  Chalerm on behalf of the premier had agreed to assign the DSI to  investigate the allegations.

The committee agreed there was sufficient evidence to warrant an investigation, he said.

The investigation would take about six months, he said.

Mr  Tharit denied the DSI's request to pursue the case was politically  motivated or that he had acted to protect himself from being removed  from his position.

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## StrontiumDog

Thai-ASEAN News Network

Telecom Commissioners Endorsement Seen Intact from Probe 

UPDATE : 9 September 2011                     *

Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung  claims the Department of Special Investigation's plan to probe the  selection process of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications  commissioners cannot be used as grounds to delay the process for royal  endorsement. 

Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung has commented on the Department  of Special Investigation, or DSI's, plan to probe an allegation of  misconduct during the selection process for members of the National  Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, or NBTC. 

He said there is no valid reason why the list of the Senate-approved  NBTC members should not be submitted for royal endorsement.  
*

Chalerm claimed the DSI is only empowered to investigate the selection committee, but not the NBTC members themselves. 

Chalerm reported that the government is currently working with the  Council of State in order to ensure the legality of the process in order  to protect the prime minister, who would be the one to seek the royal  endorsement.  

The deputy premier assured that the government has no intention in  calling off the appointment of the newly-selected 11 NBTC members. 

Chalerm also pointed out that the petition for a royal pardon for former  prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was initiated by the red-shirt group,  not the current administration, and whether the Ratchadapisek land  fraud case would be retried is up to the court's discretion.

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## StrontiumDog

Thai-ASEAN News Network

PM Assures Seeking Royal Endorsement for Telecom Panel Members 

UPDATE : 9 September 2011                     *

A deputy prime minister claims the probe  into the selection process of the telecom and broadcasting panel members  cannot be used as grounds to delay the process for royal endorsement. 

Meanwhile, the prime minister insists that she will forward the list of  the panel members for royal approval after discussing legality issues  with the Council of State. 
*

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said she has assigned the Cabinet  secretary general to hold discussions with the Council of State  following the Department of Special Investigation, or DSI's, plan to  probe an allegation of misconduct in the selection process for the  National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, or NBTC,  members.

<snipped the rest, as it is the same as the above>

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## SteveCM

*Looking after our rights*

*HEADLINE MAKER* 
*Looking after our rights*


                            By Kornchanok Raksaseri
The Nation
                                             Published on September 25, 2011                



                                                           Former activists Supinya Klangnarong and Prawit  Leesatapornwongsa don new hats on the NBTC as they take charge of  consumer protection

                              Earlier this month, after more than a decade of  attempting to establish Thailand's broadcasting and telecommunication  regulatory agency, the Senate finally selected the 11 members of the  National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission. 

While  all 11 members will no doubt have their work cut out for them during  their six-year terms, two in particular - Supinya Klangnarong and Prawit  Leesatapornwongsa, who are in charge of consumer protection - face  plenty of challenges as they shift from advocacy to authority.

"This  is the first time consumer protection representatives are formally part  of a regulatory agency. I have to prove that it works. Otherwise, in  future, members might only come from the technical and business  sectors," says Prawit.

In addition to opening the field to more  operators to allow for free and fair competition, Prawit says it's  important that members of the public are encouraged to take action and  fight for their rights.

Only two out of 100 consumers who face  problems are likely to take action, he says, partly because the  procedures require too much time and money compared to what they're  paying, albeit unfairly, to the operators.

"A mobile phone user  might not bother to file a complaint if the transport and phone calls  involved cost more than the Bt10 he's losing to the company. But  multiply all those Bt10 by the number of consumers who are being cheated  and what happens is that the business operator is undeservingly getting  several million baht," says Prawit, adding that an effective one-stop  service centre is a solution.

Prawit, the former director of the  Telecommunications Consumer Protection Institute, says his role will  change from helping people on a case-by-case basis to fixing problems on  a much larger scale.

"People say that when the 11 members of the  NBTC are appointed, the Commission's work will progress. From my three  years of experience at the Telecommunications Consumer Protection  Institute, I can say that no matter how good the commission is, unless  the wheels of the office turn accordingly, the commission's resolutions  just get stuck in a rut," he says.

An activist since his student  days, Prawit, now 46, says he enjoys being a pioneer because "laying a  good foundation is very important".

He started his career as a  director of hospitals in the provinces, went on to be a founding member  of the Foundation for Consumers, and was the first director of the  Telecommunications Consumer Protection Institute. Prawit, backed by  fellow consumer protection activists, decided to apply for the NBTC post  to prevent the post being taken by a representative from the business  or academic world who would do nothing to protect consumers.

"Many  candidates from consumer protection agencies put their names forward.  But I'm the only to have worked in the telecommunications field. I can  also start working immediately without having to study more," he notes.

Supinya has similarly credible credentials, having worked on media reforms for more than a decade.

A  graduate of Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Communication Arts,  Supinya soon became frustrated that her "quality" documentary programmes  were not aired because of various "factors" in the broadcasting  business. She moved to the non-governmental sector and was involved in  the movement calling for media reform according to the 1997  Constitution.

Supinya hit the headlines in 2003 when in her  capacity as secretary-general of the Campaign for Popular Media Reform,  she was sued by Shin Corporation over comments that Shin Corp, then  majority-owned by the family of former prime minister Thaksin  Shinawatra, had benefited from favourable policies by the Thaksin  government. Shin also demanded Bt400 million in compensation. The court  ruled in Supinya's favour in 2006. 

Her appointment to the NBTC  has met with criticism from certain quarters, with some citing her  candidacy as inappropriate because she was one of the panel who drafted a  related law.

Supinya says that while etiquette might have been violated, she has no conflict of interest in taking the job.

"My  only concern is not being able to accomplish everything I have planned.  As an activist, I have spoken a lot about how things should be. I  cannot deny responsibility," she says.

Her first task, she says,  is to draw on the cooperation of all stakeholders including viewers and  media business operators to share ideas and find some common ground.

Despite her strong stands in the past, Supinya says she's learned how to compromise.

"I  used to be anti-capitalist. But I have learned that there is an  inter-dependence between the media business and consumers," she says.
She'll also be giving priority to regulating community radio stations. 

Free  and fair competition is an NBTC principle, but Supinya says she fears  violence will break out as competition becomes more open, especially in  the community media business.

"I'm not afraid that someone will  shoot me. But I do worry about people shooting each other over business  conflicts. It could be every bit as fierce as local politics," she says.

While  the NBTC has to deal with enormous business interests and it will be  difficult to please everybody, neither Supinya nor Prawit are afraid of  being sued.

"If we are not sued, then we are doing nothing," says Supinya.

"Filing  lawsuits is how telecom business operators delay the effect of the  commission's orders, so we're expecting to be sued time and time again,"  says Prawit.

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## SteveCM

*Fitch downgrades Dtac's rating - The Nation*

The Nation December 20, 2011  5:49 pm 


                 Fitch Ratings has downgraded Thailand-based telecom  company Total Access Communication Plc's (Dtac) long-term foreign and  local currency issuer default ratings (IDR) to 'BBB-' from 'BBB'.  The  outlook is stable.

      The downgrade follows Dtac's announcement of special dividend payout  which is projected to increase the company's funds from operations  (FFO)-adjusted net leverage above 1.5 times.

      On Dec 15, Dtac announced a special dividend of Bt38.9 billion,  coinciding with a potential increase in capital expenditure (capex) for  3G investment over the next three years.

      Although Fitch expects Dtac's earnings to remain strong in the medium  term, a large special dividend payout and high upfront fee payment for  3G licence could raise Dtac's funds from operations (FFO)-adjusted net  leverage to around 1.7 times at end-2012 from a net cash position at  end-September. 

Additionally, high capex allocated to the rollout of the  3G network during 2013-2015 may keep net financial leverage at around 2  times during the period.

      Overall, Dtacs market position remains strong. The second-largest  cellular operator, with a 30 per cent subscriber market share at  end-September, has improved its nationwide network coverage and defended  its market share despite intense competition over the past three years.  Strong growth in non-voice revenue should help offset a slowdown in the  traditional voice segment, resulting in a mid-single digit revenue  growth over the next three years.

      Still, regulatory risks remain, including the pending review of  concession amendment and tighter restriction on foreign ownership laws.  Furthermore, increase in competition in the cellular market could affect  margins.

      If regulatory issues turn favourable and non-voice revenue shows  sustainable improvement, this may benefit the ratings. However, the  ratings may be negatively affected by higher-than-expected investment  spending and/or further high dividend payouts leading to significant  deterioration in FFO-adjusted net leverage to over 2.5 times on a  sustained basis. 

Unfavorable changes in the regulatory structure and  weaker linkage between the company and its parent may also result in  negative pressure on the ratings.

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## alwarner

are cat telecom any good?

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## SteveCM

*Deal with concession issue next year, minister tells CAT, TOT - The Nation*

USANEE MONGKOLPORN,SIRIVISH TOOMGUM
THE NATION December 30, 2011

                 The two state telecom agencies should finalise plans  next year on how they will deal with the approaching ends of their  private cellular concession terms, Information and Communications  Technology Minister Anudith Nakornthap said.

              CAT Telecom owns the concessions of TrueMove, Digital Phone Co (DPC),  and Total Access Communication (DTAC). The terms of TrueMove's and DPC's  concession will end in September 2013, while that of DTAC will expire  in 2018.

     TOT's cellular concession held by Advanced Info Service (AIS) will end in 2015.

     Both agencies will suffer revenue losses once the terms end, given that  the concessions account for more than half of their total revenue.

     The 2010 Frequency Allocation Law also obliges CAT and TOT to transfer  all the concession revenue to the National Broadcasting and  Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) within three years of the law  taking effect. The NBTC will pass this revenue to state coffers.

     CAT's previous board approved in principle a plan to sell the network  equipment used by TrueMove back to that firm after its concession ends.

     After the concessions end, the private telecom operators have to  transfer the network assets to the state telecom agencies under  build-transfer-operate arrangements. TrueMove proposed to buy back its  network equipment from CAT for Bt10 billion.

     Anudith said he had ordered CAT to think carefully about this issue before making a final decision.

     The chairman of CAT's executive committee, Chaiyan Peungkiatpairote,  said there were many options for dealing with the end of the  concessions. These included setting up a subsidiary to manage network  assets itself, selling the networks back to private telecom operators,  and seeking joint investment opportunities with telecom operators. The  committee is waiting for management to propose the final option.

     In a separate matter, yesterday the chairman of the House of  Representatives' communications and telecommunications committee,  Preechaphol Pongpanit, met with Anudith to follow up on the ICT  Ministry's progress in implementing the policies announced by the  government in Parliament.

     The committee recently met with the NBTC to learn about possible  impacts on the industry from the watchdog's plan to grant new spectrum  licences and to reclaim spectra from state agencies for reallocation.

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## SteveCM

*Bangkok Post : True uncertainty over 3G contracts*Published: 30/12/2011 at 12:00 AMNewspaper section: BusinessThe deal between True Corporation and its  concession owner CAT Telecom has become one of the flashpoints of the  telecommunications industry this year, drawing heavy criticism from  veterans' groups and protests from its bigger rivals in particular.



True will continue facing uncertainty regarding the third-generation  (3G) contracts next year as a slew of investigative panels under  relevant authorities scrutinise the contractual details.

 In January, CAT signed six contracts with True to provide 3G service by upgrading to a high-speed packet access (HSPA) network.

 The contract effectively extended mobile operator True Move's life by  14 years beyond the 2013 expiry of its present mobile concession.

 True invested 6 billion baht taking over Hutchison CAT Wireless  Multimedia, the marketer of tiny mobile phone business Hutch. CAT holds a  26% stake in Hutchison.

 True reiterated the contract complies with the law. Many doubts have  been cast on the ambiguity of the contract's details and the future of  the telecom industry.

 The deal has raised questions over whether it breaches the Frequency  Allocation Act, which prohibits a frequency licensee from transferring  the resource to another party.

 A condition that required CAT to reserve up to 80% of its 3G network  capacity for True using HSPA technology on the analogue 850-megahertz  frequency, a clause of the National Telecommunications Commission, which  has since been replaced by the National Broadcasting and  Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), which has asked both parties to  abolish it within 30 days, but it has remained until now.

 The contract is said to violate the Public-Private Joint Venture Act,  which requires scrutiny of ventures worth more than one billion baht  between government agencies and companies.

 This case has been under consideration by a panel of the National  Anti-Corruption Commission concerning whether it breaches the  aforementioned law and made states benefit loss or not.

 Another investigative panel under the aegis of the Information and  Communication Technology Ministry has found irregularities in the deal.

 A resolution is expected in February before the matter is passed on  to relevant authorities for further scrutiny. The NBTC will rule on the  ministry's suggestion.

 Many legal experts think the case will likely end up in court, while  many others believe the pressure on this case will ease once the 3G  licence auction for the 2100-MHz frequency goes ahead as scheduled by  mid-2012.


Writer: Komsan Tortermvasana
Position: Business Reporter

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