DoCoMo divests share in M-Pay

AIS yesterday filed a statement with the Stock Exchange of Thailand saying it acquired 9,000,000 shares in M-Pay from the Japanese company at price of Bt14 per share, totalling Bt126 million. The transaction took place last week.

DoCoMo acquired 30 per cent of M-Pay for Bt315 million, or Bt35 a share, when it jointly set up M-Pay with AIS in 2005 with total capital of Bt300 million. Last week's takeover deal means AIS becomes M-Pay's sole shareholder.

M-Pay managing director Waroonthep Watcharaporn said the transaction would enable AIS to have full control of M-Pay and gear it towards market expansion.

A telecom-industry source said the divestment came because DoCoMo could not find a value-added factor from the business.

An AIS source said DoCoMo might have wanted to leave in order to invest in new, more promising businesses, such as wireless-broadband third-generation (3G) service, in other markets. Thailand has yet to grant licences to operate the 3G spectrum.

M-Pay's customers can use their mobile phones to settle shopping transactions wirelessly. The company charges a fee for each transaction.

It has about 1.3 million registered subscribers and expects total revenue of Bt135 million this year.

Its customers can ask 40,000 company agents nationwide to make transactions for them or do it themselves, but most subscribers feel more comfortable with agents processing their transactions.

M-Pay has targeted 40 per cent of users making all of their transactions by themselves next year. Most users limit their transactions to paying for services within the AIS Group, such as refilling prepaid mobile-phone accounts.

Telecom Reporters

The Nation