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Published on August 10, 2007

Advanced Info Service has said it has dropped its policy of give-away SIM cards for both prepaid and post-paid call services, in

order to bring in real active subscribers.

Vice president for marketing Titipong Khiewpaisal yesterday said the company had also changed the way it paid commissions to SIM-card dealers.

The dealers now gain a commission only after subscribers of the SIM cards have paid the first of their monthly bills.

This will discourage dealers from give-away sprees in which the SIM cards make high sales volumes but bring in very little actual call revenues.

"We've tried this method for a few months," he added.

The largest cellular operator, with more than 22 million customers, has also checked whether the dealers are still giving away SIM cards. Those found to be doing so will be penalised.

AIS must come up with more efficient phone-number management, given that the national telecom regulator has taken time to allocate additional numbers to all telecom operators.

AIS is waiting for another 3 million phone numbers from the National Telecommunications Commission after recently receiving 1.5 million from the regulator.

AIS has acquired more than 100,000 post-paid phone subscribers monthly.

The post-paid customers have generated average revenues of about Bt800 per user per month to the company.

AIS yesterday introduced a new post-paid promotional package for both existing and new subscribers, featuring three choices of monthly fees: Bt300, Bt600 and Bt900.

The entire package is valid for one year.

The three choices cost the same Bt2 for the first calling minute and Bt1 a minute after that, regardless of the destination network or time of call.

They also offer daily free-call minutes. The first choice offers 10 minutes of free calls, the second 25 minutes and the third 40 minutes.

Sirivish Toomgum

The Nation