Telecom operators want the Finance Ministry to discuss the termination of concessions with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) so the operators have a clear idea as to what they should do next.
True Corp's CEO, Supachai Chearavanont, said he hoped negotiations would take place soon and clear directions be set for reforms, including the termination of concessions and NTC's plan to auction the 3G spectrum licences in September, so the industry can move forward.
He explained that giving the industry a clear direction would make it much more attractive to foreign investors, adding that he hoped NTC would grant 3G licences soon and the government would come up with details of the concession termination so operators have an idea of what to do next.
TrueMove's concession will end in 2013, while those of Advanced Info Service (AIS) and Total Access Communication (DTAC) will expire in 2015 and 2018, respectively. TrueMove is True Corp's mobilephone operating unit.
AIS's chief executive Wichien Mektrakarn also urged the Finance Ministry to discuss the matter with related parties, and wondered why this had not been done earlier. He said his firm was willing to discuss the concession termination with the ministry, but he was not sure whether this would be legal. He said the Constitution protected existing concessions.
The Finance Ministry wants the NTC to issue 15year licences to concession holders once those concessions have been terminated. It has recommended that the licence fee be set at 12.5 per cent of their annual revenue, and wants the NTC to raise the current 2Glicence fee to 12.5 per cent from 6 per cent to make things fair for all players.
However, both NTC and the ministry have yet to officially discuss the matter.
Sigve Brekke, executive vice president of Telenor Group and chief of its operations in Asia, said Thailand needed a free and fair telecom market. There is a strong need for restructuring so all players come under the same rules and regulations.
"I am, therefore, strongly in favour of a concession conversion taking place before 3G is introduced to ensure a fair market. If 3G comes first, it might make the Thai telecom market even more messy and consumers might end up losing in the end. I understand that both ICT and finance ministers are trying to get the concessions converted first, so I hope NTC will be in line with the government policy. And why is the NTC rushing? Why can't they wait a couple of months to make it right?" he asked.
Telenor is a strategic partner of DTAC.
Brekke added that the concession should be terminated and replaced by licenses.
"We need to look at this from a principle point of view, and make sure that the final settlement is fair for all parties. If so, we are willing to do our part," he said.
He added that Thailand had always been an interesting market for foreign telecom operators, but it's was not likely that many would bid for the 3G licences because the penetration is already very high and the regulatory situation is so complex. There are also a lot of risks with uncertain returns.
When asked if existing NTC regulations were enough to attract a bid for licences, he said the NTC's role and responsibility was to make sure that government policy is implemented in a fair, transparent and customerfriendly way.