TOT to pursue private partnerships for wireless broadband service

TOT will also test providing the 2.3GHz service on Skytrain routes, targeting commuters to become its users, he said.
TOT owns a huge 60MHz bandwidth of the 2.3GHz spectrum. Its board recently approved an agency plan to invite international telecom network suppliers and local telecom operators to jointly introduce the 2.3GHz service.
True’s chief executive officer Suphachai Chearavanont said the company is interested in providing the 2.3GHz service with TOT on a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) basis. The company is waiting to see TOT’s business model before making any proposal.
A TOT source said that the state enterprise would ask Advanced Info Service, Total Access Communication, and True about their 2.3GHz spectrum bandwidth requirement. TOT will then inform their bandwidth demand to potential network equipment suppliers to enable them to draw up rollout proposals and submit them to TOT.
The state agency will select the supplier with the best proposal to roll out the network for TOT, the source added.
The source said that TOT had already informally approached Huawei Technologies, Nokia Networks, and Ericsson.
By this model, TOT will not have to invest in the project on its own in the initial stage. It will wholesale the 2.3GHz bandwidth to interested local telecom operators. Revenue TOT will gain from the bandwidth wholesale will be used to finance the 2.3GHz network rollout by the supplier it will select.
State agencies TOT and CAT Telecom are now seeking private partners to help them survive the intense market competition.
The TOT board last Tuesday reversed its previous resolution by asking the state agency to request the Council of State to re-examine legal aspects of TOT’s plan to sign a deal with Advanced Wireless Network (AWN), a unit of AIS, for the launch of a joint trial commercial service on TOT’s 2.1-gigahertz spectrum.
The TOT board on June 9 had approved TOT going ahead and signing the contract with AWN on the condition that some issues were clarified first.
The planned joint trial service will last six months, after which they will sign other long-term contracts as part of their partnership to provide third-generation cellular service on TOT’s 2.1GHz band. TOT expected to earn Bt9.5 billion per year from this overall partnership.
Montchai said TOT is expected to report a loss of Bt4 billion this year, due to two main reasons – expiry of the AIS concession last September and its failure to sign a deal with AWN to launch a joint trial commercial service on TOT’s 2.1GHz spectrum. TOT had expected to gain Bt300 million in revenue per month from the trial service.
The agency will also spend Bt3 billion on its early retirement |plan this year to shed about 1,200 workers.