Regulations on 3G licensing ready by year-end
The chairman of the national telecom regulator promised to complete the regulations governing the licensing of third-generation (3G) wireless broadband technology this year, although it remains unclear whether licences can be granted before a national broadcasting regulator is established.
Choochart Promphrasid, chairman of the National Telecom-munications Commission (NTC), recently said if the NTC were not permitted to award new spectrums dedicated to 3G services, then the telecom regulator would allow telecom operators to develop the services on their existing frequencies. Choochart added that the NTC would finish drafting licensing regulations for 3G this year. The NTC consulted the Council of State this month to determine whether the regulator should draw up a national frequency-allocation table and award new spectrum licences without waiting for the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to be set up. Last November, the Central Administrative Court nullified the selection process for 14 candidates to serve on the NBC, labelling the process unconstitutional. This set the stage for a new selection process. Under the Frequency Allocation Act of 2000, the two regulatory bodies are supposed to create a joint panel to prepare a national table of frequency allocations. They are then jointly to allocate broadcasting and telecom frequencies and prescribe rules governing their use. The NTC earlier asked if it could use the long-standing national table of frequency allocations drawn up by the now-defunct Post and Telegraph Department (PTD) to manage and allocate the new spectrums in the NBC's absence. In response, the Council of State said the Frequency Allocation Act of 2000, which specifically dictates that the NTC and the NBC manage the frequencies jointly, rendered the PTD's frequency-allocation table invalid. However, it added that the NTC "might be able" to refer to the frequency table of the UN's International Telecom Union as a guideline for managing the telecom and broadcasting industries. Sudharma Yoonaidharma, a member of the telecom regulatory commission, said the NTC would interpret the Council of State's response. Cellular operators have been waiting for licences to provide 3G services, which would enable them to offer bandwidth-consuming services like live video broadcasting. This would enable them to create new revenue streams. The NTC is still trying to determine the appropriate number of 3G licences for Thailand, the licensing methods and the economic and social effects of 3G technology.
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