Chief executive Sigve Brekke said that forecast was in line with a continuing trend and a result of the company's attractive marketing campaigns and did not necessarily represent a possible switching over of Advanced Info Service Plc (AIS) customers to DTAC in protest of the Shin-Temasek deal.

DTAC reported a net increase of 147,000 new customers in December, after 125,000 new ones signed on in November. He said the trend seemed to continue in this year's first quarter.

DTAC also logged 51,000 new post-paid subscribers in December, following 24,000 new ones in November. Almost all of the new subscribers in December had switched from other networks, with very few first-time mobile-phone users, said Sunti Medhavikul, chief customer officer.

He attributed the growth to DTAC's attractive call promotions.

The Shinawatra and Damapong families sold their combined 49.6-per-cent stake in Shin Corp Plc to Singapore's state investment arm, Temasek Holdings, in January.

The deal was subsequently criticised for placing some of Thailand's most strategic assets in the hands of a foreign government. Shin subsidiaries include AIS, satellite operator Shin Satellite Plc and free-television broadcaster iTV Plc.

In response, activist groups have launched a campaign to boycott Shin and Temasek products.

A DTAC source said that the company continued to witness a migration of premium corporate and individual mobile-phone users from different networks to DTAC at this time but declined to elaborate.

Sunti said DTAC targets 2 million post-paid users by the end of this year and 3 million by the end of 2008, up from the current 1.5 million. It also aims to expand the number of its high-usage post-paid subscribers, from 200,000 now to 500,000 within three years.

DTAC has nearly 9 million subscribers and AIS more than 16 million.

Sirivish Toomgum

The Nation