True opposes CAT idea on new 3G contracts
True Corp has come out in opposition to CAT Telecom's idea of drawing up new contracts for their 3G-service partnership, contending that the two parties should focus on jointly revising the existing contracts.
In a statement yesterday, True responded to the CAT position on revising the contracts to bring them into compliance with the Frequency Allocation Law as ordered by the telecom committee of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).
CAT’s working committee on the matter put forth two options: drafting new contracts or revising the existing ones. CAT will submit a final decision for its board’s consideration on August 8.
True said it was willing to cooperate with CAT to revise the contracts as fast as possible. The two parties have yet to complete talks on how to amend them.
The NBTC telecom committee last month ordered CAT to revise the contracts jointly with True after its subcommittee found that the deals breached the 2010 Frequency Allocation Law. The subcommittee concluded that in practice, CAT appeared not to have complete management control of its 800-megahertz spectrum being used under the partnership to provide wholesale-resale third-generation cellular service.
Article 46 (2) of the Frequency Allocation Law prohibits NBTC licence-holders such as CAT and TOT from allowing third parties to take control of their spectrum management.
The telecom committee also recommended that CAT revise six points of the contracts with True to give it full management control of its spectrum.
CAT and True subsidiaries Real Future and Real Move signed contracts in January last year to forge the partnership. Under the deals, CAT has leased 3G network equipment from Real Future’s BFKT (Thailand) to generate 3G bandwidth for wholesale. It has wholesaled such bandwidth to Real Move.
The deals attracted scrutiny by state authorities over their doubtful legality.
