As the Finance Ministry's spokesman, Somchai Sajjapongse, deputy director-general of the Fiscal Policy Office, said yesterday that during October to December, government revenue had totalled Bt303.6 billion, 14.8 per cent above the same period last year.

Disbursements were Bt300.18 billion, 17 per cent or Bt60 billion lower than the same period last year.

There was an overall budget surplus of Bt3.44 billion.

"However, taking into account the off-balance deficit of Bt55 billion, the quarterly fiscal position was in a deficit of Bt51.6 billion," Somchai said.

At the end of October, public debt stood at 41.14 per cent of gross domestic product, well below the 50-per-cent limit. - The Nation.

Shin IPTV

International Datacasting Corp announced yesterday that it had been awarded a contract by Shin Broadband Internet to provide Datacast XD Content Management and Distribution software for a next-generation Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) Push Video On Demand service in Asia.

The contract calls for an initial roll-out phase of the system, with options for expansion as the service reaches full deployment.

Shin Broadband Internet pushes high-definition movies over the Shin Satellite iPSTAR system across Asia to low-cost consumer set-top boxes located in homes. Datacast XD software will be used to manage the delivery of this content on the network.

Canada-based International Datacasting Corp is also responsible for the project management and system integration of the project, which also utilises Irdeto encryption for content security inside the set-top boxes, which are manufactured by Homecast of South Korea.

The iPSTAR satellite network provides business and residential Internet service throughout the Asia-Pacific region. The number of satellite user terminals provided by Shin Satellite is more than 70,000, and growing. - The Nation.

New products 

Thanachart Bank will offer nine-month fixed deposit and seven-month bill of exchange products with 5-per-cent interest per annum. The minimum investment is Bt100,000. Those who invest in the nine-month fixed-deposit product will from the third month receive monthly interest.

The products are on offer from today. - The Nation.

Food research

Tesco Lotus has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Kasetsart University, covering cooperation with the Faculty of Agro-Industry, the Institute of Food Research and Product Development and KU First, Kasetsart's technical centre for innovation and consulting services.

The MoU covers four main areas: developing personnel in food science from both the educational and industrial sectors; researching and developing food products by integrating both domestic and foreign knowledge to produce and develop innovative food products, and particularly Thai food; organising activities to create awareness of food safety and nutritional value among consumers; and organising forums to exchange knowledge and bring about cooperative activities. - The Nation.