Dtac 3G Expo a big success

A number of 2,200 smartphones that support 3G services were sold out during the two-day event.

Pakorn Pannachet, senior vice president for products division, said that the overwhelming number of visitors to the expo reflected the huge interest on the new telecommunication technology.

Launching the service on Aug 16, 380,000 clients have been using the company's 3G service and after the expo, the number should rise to 450,000. The number of 3G cell sites will be raised by over 200 points, from 400, in Bangkok and peripheral provinces. More applications and contents will also be developed and launched in the next two months.

Dtac also plans to launch a joint promotion with mobile phone companies and financial institutions, to offer a discount or a zero-rate instalment package.

Dtac kicked off the expo at Siam Paragon on Saturday, to officially launch its 3G service despite legal wrangling with its concession owner, CAT Telecom.

 "The expo is part of Dtac's long-term strategy to become the best data network provider. The expo is where customers can buy mobile phones and accesssories that supports the 3G service on the 850MHz frequency, which will benefit existing clients and expand our client base," said Pakorn.

  Dtac planned to offer a 50 per cent discount on 100 smartphone units each on Saturday and Sunday. Due to overwhelming response, the discount was extended to 1,100 lucky persons on Saturday. On Sunday, registration for 50 per cent for the first 100 units and 10 per cent for 1,000 units is open until 5pm.

 Nokia, Samsung, Blackberry, HTC, ZTE, Huawei, Acer and Dell are partners of the event.

Since trial launch on August 16, Dtac has witnessed a 20 per cent increase on data transmission nationwide. Connection to social media websites skyrocketed, 200 per cent on YouTube.