Nukul Bawornsirinukul, head of the union, claimed last week that the National Telecommunications Commission's (NTC) licensing actions had undermined the businesses of state telecom agencies, including TOT Plc, which is one of the NTC's licensees.

The union will file charges with the Central Administrative Court and Criminal Court, he said.

The TOT labour union has often criticised the NTC, the only industry regulator in the country, for unfair treatment of the state agencies.

Recently the union questioned whether the granting of a licence to Triple T Broadband to operate the same data communications service offered by its parent, TT&T Plc, contravened the Telecommunications Business Act of 2001.

The law requires the NTC to prevent licensees from committing monopolistic acts, including entering into cross-holdings in the same service category.

In February the NTC awarded Triple T a Type 3 licence, which is for an applicant offering a service to the general public over a large network.

TT&T, which holds a concession from TOT, operates voice and data communications services across the country, except in metropolitan areas.

The NTC has told the TOT union that as Triple T and TT&T do not share a common structure, despite their subsidiary-parent relationship, Triple T was eligible for a licence on its own.

The union has also accused TT&T of trying to migrate its own customers to Triple T, a charge TT&T executives have always denied.

The union has said the NTC might have conflict of interest as two of its members, Sethaporn Cusripituck and Rianchai Reowilaisuk, were once on Shin Satellite's board of directors.

Nukul said the union would also ask the government to return the amount collected as telecom excise tax to the state telecoms, which see the tax as the main cause of their financial shortcomings.

The administration of then prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra imposed the telecom excise tax in 2003, which meant that TOT and CAT no longer receive 100 per cent of the concession fees paid by private telecoms. Private telephone operators deduct 2 per cent of the total concession payments they owe and pass on that amount to the Excise Department, while private cellular operators have to give 10 per cent to the Excise Department.

Separately, NTC secretary-general Suranan Wongvithayakamjorn said True Net had filed a formal complaint against TOT and CAT for refusing the company's request to access their facilities so it could offer an international Internet gateway service, even though True Net has an NTC licence.

Suranan said the two state telecoms had been asked to clarify the matter.

Usanee Mongkolporn

The Nation