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Published on February 22, 2008

Patompob Suwansiri, the company's head of iPSTAR satellite marketing, said a co-investment was just an option, along with the possibility that ShinSat might fund the satellite on its own.

The company has no deadline to decide if it needs the satellite and, if so, whether it would be for broadcasting or broadband. "It depends on a study of the market demand," he added.

The life span of ShinSat's broadcasting satellite Thaicom 1 will expire in the middle of 2009, which is when ShinSat will transfer Thaicom 1 customers to Thaicom 5. Thaicom 5 has already utilised 75 per cent of its capacity.

ShinSat owns Thaicom 1, 2, 5 broadcasting satellites, and the flagship iPSTAR broadband satellite.

The iPSTAR service is set to be up and running in four new markets - South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia - within the next few months. It is also hoped it can enter India, Taiwan and Japan within this year. The iPSTAR footprint covers the Asia-Pacific region, but permission is still needed from the Indian government to enable the company to import its gateway equipment into the country's vast market. It is expected to take a long time before permission is granted.

This year iPSTAR targets accumulated sales of more than 200,000 signal-receiving terminals, including 90,000 to 100,000 new terminals this year on top of sales last year.

Patompob is optimistic that TOT, the iPSTAR wholesale service distributor in Thailand, will place more orders for terminals this year after 6,000 terminals were supplied to the state agency last year. A further 11,000 will be supplied to TOT this year under last year's contract.

ShinSat will today file its 2007 financial performance with the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

According to brokerage firm UOB Kayhian, ShinSat is expected to post a pre-tax loss of Bt316 million in the fourth quarter of 2007 versus a pre-tax loss of Bt356 million in the third quarter. Its revenue in the quarter is expected to grow 15 per cent on a quarterly basis, due mainly to the high sales of new iPSTAR terminals.

ShinSat is expected to sell an additional 12,000 iPSTAR terminals in the fourth quarter, up from 6,850 units in third quarter.

Its revenues for the third quarter were Bt6.879 billion, an increase of 280 per cent over the same period last year, due to a gain of Bt5.127 billion on the sale of its 49-per-cent share in its overseas telecom holding Shenington to Asia Mobile Holdings in July.

Sirivish Toomgum

The Nation