briefs

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission’s broadcasting committee has agreed to consider the controversy over the airing of the Euro 2012 soccer tournament.

Natee Sukonrat, chairman of the committee, said the panel would meet today look into the matter but admitted it might be difficult for it to do anything, since the watchdog has yet to finish drafting regulations for the TV broadcasting industry and its content.

Pay-TV operator TrueVisions yesterday complained to the NBTC that all Thais should be allowed to view all free TV content on an equal basis after GMM Grammy, which won the local rights to air Euro 2012, said only those with GMM Z set-top boxes and TV antennas could view the Euro season via the boxes and TV Channel 3. Free-TV viewers without the box or the antenna will see their screen blanked out during the matches. 

 

Vichitra plans 4 projects

Vichitra Property Group plans to launch four residential projects worth Bt900 million in the second half of this year with the focus on the Bangkok suburbs and upcountry.

Victoria Private City will consist of townhouses and a commercial building at Kilometre 30 of Bang Na-Trat Road worth Bt100 million. Maruay Motorway, in Chachoengsao, will feature detached houses worth Bt300 million. 

Maruay in Sa Kaew will offer detached houses worth Bt200 million. Maruay Sathorn 2 in Chachoengsao will provide detached houses worth Bt300 million.

CEO Suebwong Sukamongkol said yesterday that the company became interested in developing projects in the provinces when it saw strong demand for homes in locations that did not face floods. 

 

Push for private schools

The Cabinet has approved tax breaks to promote private schools.

Deputy Finance Minister Tanusak Lekuthai said yesterday that the specific business tax would be waived for privately run school funds. The tax exemption is aimed at providing support to private schools, he said. 

 

Seoul drops duty

There will soon be more particle-board exports to South Korea after Seoul decided to drop its anti-dumping duty on Thai and Malaysian products.

Surasak Riangkrul, deputy director-general of the Foreign Trade Department, said yesterday that South Korea decided to drop the duty recently out of concern for the needs of its manufacturers, mainly of furniture.

However, exporters should carefully quote prices, which should not be too low, to avoid future problems, he said. Thailand is the major exporter of the product to South Korea with a 52-per-cent share. 

 

SMA solar office

Germany-based SMA Solar Technology yesterday opened a sales and service office to offer a range of solar inverters for all plant sizes, from residential rooftops to megawatt solar power plants. 

   The new office is offering professional consulting for photovoltaic project planning, customer training and an extensive range of services. 

 

Chevy sales strong

Chevrolet Sales Thailand continued to post strong sales last month thanks to a rapidly recovering car market and the strength of its products.

Chevrolet sold 5,944 vehicles, bringing its total for the first five months to 26,682 – the most vehicles sold in the same period of any year since Chevrolet started operations in this market. 

This represents growth of 117 per cent over the same period last year. In year-on-year terms, Chevrolet sales were up 112 per cent.

“This is our second-best sales month ever. Sales of the Colorado continue to be strong, accounting for 60 per cent of our total sales,” Antonio Zara, vice president of sales, marketing and after-sales for General Motors Thailand/SEA and Chevrolet Sales Thailand, said yesterday.

Chevrolet sold 3,551 Colorado pickups in May, followed by the Captiva sport-utility with 1,001 units. 

A total of 884 Cruze sedans were sold while the Aveo sedan continued to attract buyers, boasting 506 new owners.

Thailand is the fastest-growing among GM International Operations’ markets.