Thailand - A telecom market waiting to happen
Isabelle Paradis
February 2005

Before entering the 21st century, Thailand’s telecom market was particularly underdeveloped. With the aim of restructuring its economy, in the wake of the crisis of the late 1990s, the government focused considerable efforts on the telecom sector, transforming it into a significant component of the Thai economy and welcoming a number of foreign investors.

The privatisation of the two incumbents (TOT and CAT) remains an integral part of the government’s economic reform plans. However, the new regulator has failed to be created, mainly due to political disputes, and both operators are yet to be privatised. Some say progress in regulatory reform will not happen before the second quarter of 2005 once the general elections are out of the way.

Thailand's telecom industry needs a rapid transformation, mainly in the fixed market, as the country proceeds toward meeting its WTO obligations to full liberalization by 2006 and as full market liberalisation is crucial for Thailand to reach its full potential in the telecom sector.

At the end of June 2004, the Thailand had a total of 6.5 million fixed line, 25.1 million mobile subscribers, and over 1.5 million Internet subscribers. Penetration stood at 10.1%, 39.0% and 2.3% for the fixed, mobile and Internet markets respectively. It is forecasted that the number of fixed subscribers will continue to stagnate to reach only 6.8 million by the end of 2008, the number of mobile subscribers should grow to 38.6 million and the number of Internet subscribers should surpass 2.5 million by the same period.

Find our more about this market in HOT TELECOM’s new 31-page country report.

More info: Thailand - Country Profile