Thailand’s telecoms regulator has awarded 3G licences to three operators following October’s spectrum auction.
In statements on Thailand’s stock exchange today, mobile carriers AIS, Dtac and True Corp all announced that they had won spectrum in…
Thailand’s telecoms regulator has awarded 3G licences to three operators following October’s spectrum auction.
In statements on Thailand’s stock exchange today, mobile carriers AIS, Dtac and True Corp all announced that they had won spectrum in the 2.1GHz band from the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission.
Dtac said it will pay THB14,445m (US$471.7m) for the 3G licence and that it had made its first instalment payment of THB7222.50m (US$235.8m) already. The second and third payments will be made after two and three years of receiving the licence respectively.
The telco expects to be able to provide 3G services in Bangkok by mid-2013, to 50% of the population within two years and to 80% within four years, the statement added.
AIS said it will pay THB14,625m (US$477.5m) for its licence, the first instalment of which will be paid within 90 days of being notified as the winning bidder. The telco added it would be investing THB13,013.63m (US$413m) in the new network.
True Corp announced that it would pay THB13,500m (US$440.9m) for spectrum in the 2.1GHz band and invest THB8,000m (US$261.3m) in the network, totalling THB21,500m (US$702m) for the transaction.
“For further phases of investment, [True Corp] might consider suitable expansion of telecommunications network coverage and capacity in response to the increasing future demand, which may require an estimated additional investment of approximately THB27,000m (US$881.6m),” the telco said in the release.
Thailand plans to hold a 4G auction next year, in line with other Asian countries which have already progressed to more advanced technology.
