Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 186.15
Percentage Internet population: 66.65
Fixed-broadband subscriptions: 14.51
6. Thailand
6.1 ICT authority
The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (MDES) was established on 3 October 2002 under the name of the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT) subsequently, there was an improvement of the Ministry of Ministry on September 16, 2016 by establishing the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society. MICT's former agencies, the National Statistical Office of Thailand, the Thai Meteorological Department, the Electronic Transactions Development Agency, Thailand Post, TOT, and CAT Telecom, are to be transferred to the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society. MDES has authority regarding the planning, promotion, and development of the digital economy.
6.2 Policy, regulation or strategy on broadband and mobile connectivity
6.2.1 National ICT Policy and Strategies
On February 8, 2016, the Committee on Preparations for Digital Economy and Society approved the draft Digital Development Plan for Economy and Society. Prime Ministry General Prayut Chan-o-cha chaired the Committee. The aim of plan is to transform towards ‘Digital Thailand’ that maximizes the use of digital technologies in all socio-economic activities in order to develop infrastructure, innovation, data, human, capital, and other digital resources that will ultimately drive the country towards wealth, stability, and sustainability. The plan focuses on four main goals:
1. Raising the country’s competitiveness with digital innovation
2. Creating equal opportunities with information and digital services
3. Developing human capital for the digital era
4. Revolutionizing government operations for better transparency and effectiveness
The Digital Thailand Plan aims for long-term development and sustainability, in accordance with the country’s 20-year strategy. However, Digital technology is fast changing and therefore requires the digital landscape to be structured in phases as follows:
1. Digital Foundation: Investing and building digital foundation (1 Year 6 Month)
2. Digital Thailand 1: Ensuring everyone can reap the benefits of digital technology (5 Years)
3. Digital Thailand 2: Driving the country with digital technology and innovation (10 Years)
4. Global Digital Leadership: Leading with digital technology and innovation (10-20 Years)
To implement the Digital Thailand Plan, there are six main strategies:
1. Build country-wide high-capacity digital infrastructure
2. Boost the economy with digital technology
3. Creation a quality and equitable society through digital technology
4. Transform into digital government
5. Develop workforce for the digital era
6. Build trust and confidence in the use of digital technology
In addition, pilot projects will be launched to develop Phuketand Chiang Mai as “smart cities”, and small and medium-sized enterprises will be encourage to conduct business using the digital economy.
5.2.2 Landline and mobile penetration
Thailand is a "Mobile First" country, and the number of mobile subscribers in Thailand began to exceed the total population in 2010, and 4G commercialization service began in 2016. According to the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), mobile penetration reached 135.4 percent as of 2017. Thailand's mobile telecommunication market is worth more than 600 billion baht (18.9 billion dollars) and has been growing at 2% per year since 2016. The Thai government has established a 'five-year roadmap for Thailand's mobile telecommunication frequency' in order to take the lead in supplying 5G in Southeast Asia and pave the way for Thailand's economic leap forward.
As of 2019, the top three companies account for most of the Thai mobile market with 44% of the Advanced Info Service Public Company Limited (AIS), 31.8% of True Corporation, and 21.6% of Total Access Communication Public Company Limited (DTAC).
5.2.3 International interconnection
Telecommunication network operators have their own on-land fiber optic cable networks. Government is not enough to provide backbone cables for all network operator. Operators that own optical fiber networks include CAT, TOT, TT&T, AIS, DATC and TURE. CAT is the leading operator for international submarine cable systems in Thailand. Moreover there are two other players in fiber infrastructure consisting of Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) and Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA).
Thailand wins a rising importance in the international telecommunications and Internet market with its geographical advantage and open market strategy. The majority of Thailand international bandwidth rans to either Singapore or Hong Kong via various submarine cable systems. Thailand also connects neighboring countries with cross-border terrestrial cable systems. Submarine cable systems are mainly used for global network connections. Three telecom operators, including CAT, TOT, and Symphony) which have submarine cable systems. There are now 8 international submarine cable systems landing in Thailand, and two new cables under construction:
Asia-Africa-Europe 1 (AAE-1)
FLAG Europe Asia (FEA)
SeaMeWe 3 (SMW3)
SeaMeWe 4 (SMW4)
Asia-America Gateway Cable System (AAG)
Asia Pacific Gateway (APG)
Malaysia-Cambodia-Thailand Cable (MCT)
Thailand-Indonesia-Singapore (TIS)
Southeast Asia Japan Cable2 (SJC2, 2022)
Asia Direct Cable (ADC, 2022)
5.3 Opportunities, Challenges or Pending Policy Agenda
5.3.1 Opportunities and Challenges
Thailand has the potential to drive industry growth based on mobile devices. Thailand is a ‘Mobile First’ country with 121.53 million mobile phone subscribers as of 2017, with 175.9 percent penetration rate, more than 45.19 million Internet subscribers. Thailand has been providing 4G services since 2016, and policies which aimed at commercializing 5G network service are being implemented. According to the World Economy Forum, Thailand is above the average for the Networked Readiness Index (NRI) in four indices: business and innovation environment, infrastructure, business usage and social impact. In addition, the Thailand government is considering the ICT development as a main target of national initiatives such as 'Thailand 4.0' and digital economy policies, ecosystem for ICT startups, and expanding ICT markets like cloud and big data.
In other word, there are six main challenge in Thailand context:
To reduce inequality with digital technology in the areas of income distribution, education, healthcare and ageing society, and access to information
To raise capacity and competitiveness in all economic sectors with digital technology, including agriculture, manufacturing, and services with a strong focus on SMEs and Community business
To adapt and seize opportunities from economic integration, especially AEC, with free flow of goods and labor
To create wealth and escape the middle-income trap by promoting and investing in both existing and new S-Curve industries, including digital industry
To build capacity and prepare both IT and non-IT workforce for the digital era
To fight corruption by increasing government transparency and civic engagement-through open data and digital technology
However, political instability in Thailand puts long-term ICT development plans and foreign investment at risk. Also, according to the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC), the slowing economy has triggered a surge in household debt of 78% in 2019 due to the domestic economic slowdown, which is affected by the prolonged trade war, lower exports and tourism. In addition, according to Kasikornbank’s centre, the debt to GDP ratio may jump to 88-90% at the end of this year because of the large shock to GDP from COVID-19 pandemic. The slowing economy has curbed people’s income, prompting them to rely more on loans for daily spending. A decline in people’s income would erode demand for the ICT technology market.
5.3.2 Pending Policy Agenda
Thailand is undergoing extensive reformation in all socio-economic dimensions. The cabinet has realized the urgent need to leverage digital technology to drive the country forward and therefore assigned the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT) and the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) to co-develop Thailand Digital Economy and Society Development Plan on February 8, 2016. The plan acts as a digital blueprint to revolutionize government operations, business practices, and people’s lifestyle. The ultimate goal is to bring about social stability as well as economic wealth in Thailand.
The Digital Thailand Plan aims for long-term development and sustainability, in accordance with the country’s 20-year strategy. Digital technology, however, is fast changing and therefore requires the digital landscape to be structured in phases. In phase 1, Thailand will focus on investing and building digital foundation to reap the benefits in later years. All strategies in this phase as well as introducing new digital laws and institutional reforms. The phase 2 is about social inclusion. At the end of this phase, the country will become Digital Thailand, in which everyone can access and make full use of digital technology, both socially and economically. This phase will focus on inclusive growth and development. Then, the phase 3 is a phase of full transformation, in which Thailand will be driven by digital technology and innovation. All the 4-dimension goals must be achievement in this phase. Finally, phase 4 aims global digital leadership. The goal of long-term development here will be aligned with that of the National Strategy, which stets the course for Thailand to become a developed country in 20 years. Digital technology will be used to create value in a long-term and sustainable manner. There are seven implementation mechanisms for Digital Thailand, including infrastructure, digital economy, digital government, digital society, institutional reform, coordination and resource allocation, monitoring and evaluation.
References
BKNIX (2016) Cable Expansion in Asia.
Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (2015) Thailand Broadband Policy and Progress, ITU Regional Forum on Reshaping Policy and Regulatory Landscape for Accelerating Broadband Access.
Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (2017) Thailand Digital Economy and Society Development plan
Office of the National Digital Economy and Society Commission (2018) Thailand Digital Pocket Book. Available at https://www.onde.go.th/view/1/home/EN-US
PORTULANS INSTITUE (2020) THE NETWORK READNIESS INDEX 2020. Available at https://networkreadinessindex.org/
Ukrit Mankong (2009) Submarine Cable Networks, Chiang Mai University
Wendy Zeldin (2016) Thailand: Digital Ministry Established as Part of National Digital Economy Plan, Library of congress. Available at Thailand: Digital Ministry Established as Part of National Digital Economy Plan | Global Legal Monitor (loc.gov)
World Economy Forum (2015) The Global Information Technology Report 2015. Available at https://www.weforum.org/reports/global-information-technology-report-2015
'Study > English Essay' 카테고리의 다른 글
| The effects of Sharing Economy (0) | 2022.01.08 |
|---|---|
| 정중하게 부탁하는 이메일 표현 (0) | 2021.01.05 |
| SK Telecom beyond telecommunication company (2) | 2020.12.09 |
| KT, SKT, LGU+, 카카오, 네이버의 매출 구성 정리 (0) | 2020.12.09 |
| ICT indicator (0) | 2020.11.16 |