CAT and True in talks to tide over 3G deal problems

CAT chief executive officer Kitisak Sriprasert said their talks also covered how to deal with TrueMove’s concession, which ends next September. TrueMove – True’s cellular flagship – has operated under the CAT concession.
“Our talks are based on the concept that CAT wants to be the network provider, while True wants to keep its cellular customers,” he added.
According to Information and Communications Technology Minister Anudith Nakornthap, CAT and True have to come up with the solutions by July, given the auction of the 3G-2.1GHz spectrum licences by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) is expected to take place around October.
A CAT source said that both Kitisak and True’s chief executive officer, Suphachai Chearavanont, have already reached an agreement to set up a joint working group to solve all the problems.
The source added that one possible solution is both might jointly revise the 3G partnership deal. CAT will have to invest in the 3G network rollout on its own under the deal.
Under the deals signed last January between CAT and True subsidiaries Real Move and Real Future, CAT has BFKT (Thailand) of Real Future procure the 3G network equipment for it to generate 3G bandwidth capacity for wholesale. CAT has also leased the bandwidth to Real Move as a wholesale-resale contract and has kept some part to resell on its own.
The source added that under the new model, CAT might lease the bandwidth to any interested firms, including Real Move and Total Access Communication (DTAC), on a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) basis. An MVNO is a firm without its own network that leases airtime or a network of network operators to provide service.
Real Move can also lease this bandwidth to serve the more than 18 million customers of TrueMove once TrueMove’s concession ends, the source added.
CAT has also mulled setting up joint ventures with TrueMove and DTAC to manage their networks after their networks are transferred to CAT when their concessions end.
Kitisak said that one good sign in the state agency’s plan to become a network provider is that DTAC recently told CAT it would move its ongoing dispute with CAT over the doubtful ownership of some network facilities from the arbitration panel to the court. This will be a faster way for the case to reach finality, so that CAT can plan its network business direction in the future.
He added that TrueMove has also informed CAT that it wants to stop testing its 3G service on the 850MHz spectrum and will turn to have its customers roam with the Real Move 3G service instead.
The CAT-True 3G deals attracted probes by state authorities over their legality. The ICT Ministry’s committee recently concluded that there are alleged irregularities in the manner the deals were made. The subcommittee under the National Anti-Corruption Commission concluded that some CAT officials, by getting involved in the deals, have breached the law.
The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission’s subcommittee is probing if the deals breached Article 46 (2) of the 2010 Frequency Allocation Law, which bans its licence-holders from allowing other parties to manage their spectrum rights. The subcommittee will conclude its probe today.
The ICT Ministry last week instructed CAT to suspend the plan to further expand its 3G service on its own under the deals, pending the complete probe by state authorities. It also instructed CAT to probe if BFKT needs to have a business licence to operate its business under the CAT-True 3G deals, and if 5,500 3G base stations installed by BFKT under the deals all have permits.