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Published on December 7, 2007

A source at the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) yesterday said the companies were Advanced Info Service (AIS), Total Access Communication, True Move and Ericsson. The NTC board will consider their applications today.

The NTC has yet to finalise regulations for testing 3G.

It is currently attempting to get UK-based consultant Interconnection Communications to lower its fee for drafting the terms and conditions for awarding the long-awaited 3G broadband spectrum licences.

The NTC has a budget of Bt24 million for the consultancy. After a deal is struck, the consultant will have to start work immediately and present the NTC with results in three months.

The consultant will help the NTC to determine the market demand for 3G services, the appropriate number of spectrum licences, the bandwidth of 3G frequencies to be used, licence fees and licensing regulations.

Using 3G technology, cellular operators will be able to offer bandwidth-hungry content at blazing speed to mobile-phone subscribers with 3G-capable handsets.

The licensing body has already permitted 11 companies, including AIS, to spend 90 days testing the wireless broadband-Internet technology, Wi-Max.

AIS, which gained permission in the past two weeks, is in talks with telecom equipment suppliers for a joint Wi-Max trial in northern Thailand on the 2.5-gigahertz spectrum.

Allocation of 3G-frequency licences has been delayed for years, due to the absence of a National Broadcasting Commission (NBC).

The Frequency Allocation Act stipulates that the NTC and NBC must set up a joint panel to allocate telecom and broadcasting frequencies and prescribe their use.

The Council of State has cleared the way for the NTC to issue 3G licences by ruling it can allocate new frequencies but only for telecom services.

However, uncertainty remains. The new Constitution provides for the establishment of a new single regulator called the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, and the frequency allocation law is being amended to support formation of the new body.

Despite this, the NTC is proceeding with the drafting of 3G-licence regulations, in accordance with its plans.

Usanee Mongkolporn

 The Nation