Ground set for TV auction

Natee Sukonrat said yesterday that the draft comprised key details for the spectrum auction. For example, the starting prices of each licence and the method of the auction and payment for the licences are outlined.

He added that the auction for each licence category would be held separately and on different days. The auction of each must be complete within one hour. If the number of bidders who offer the highest prices is more than the number of available licences, the NBTC will add extra five-minute auction rounds until the winners of each licence category are known.

The successful bidders will have the privilege of selecting their channel number and network provider on top of getting a service licence and the right to hold a frequency, he added.

The channel numbers for commercial TV broadcasts range from 13 to 36, while channels 1 to 12 are reserved for public TV. Standard-definition children’s channels are 13 to 15, SD news channels from 16 to 22, SD variety channels from 23 to 29, and high-definition (HD) variety channels from 30 to 36.

The NBTC will offer an instalment payment scheme for all successful bidders. Some of the payments will be allocated for the NBTC’s programmes to ensure wide public access to digital TV, and some for the commission’s Research and Development Fund.

The first programme will consist either of a subsidy scheme for 22 million households or discount coupons towards the purchase of digital set-top boxes or integrated digital TV sets. The NBTC expects that the auction will earn at least Bt15.19 billion. Potentially, each household could be given a discount coupon worth at least Bt690.

Each TV licence holder will have four years to pay its contribution to this programme. In first year, it must pay 50 per cent of the starting bid price to the NBTC for this project, 30 per cent in the second year, 10 per cent in the third year and the remaining 10 per cent in the fourth.

Natee said this instalment method was in accordance with the roll-out plan for the digital terrestrial TV network. Under this plan, network providers must provide digital TV coverage to 50 per cent of total households in the first year, 70 per cent by the second year, 80 per cent by the third year and 95 per cent by the fourth year.

The second programme is the R&D Fund. In the first two years, each TV licensee must pay 10 per cent of excess price a year for this fund while during the third year and the sixth year, it must pay 20 per cent of excess price a year.

The auction method specified in the draft calls for "forward auction", in which the bidders must raise their price in each round. For a children’s programming licence, the participants must raise their bid by Bt1 million per round, Bt2 million per round for news programming, Bt5 million per round for variety channels and Bt10 million per round for the HD variety-channel licence. These amounts are based on around 1 per cent of the reserve price of each licence.

The starting prices are set by the draft at Bt1.51 billion for each of seven HD variety channels, Bt380 million for each of seven SD variety channels, Bt220 million for each of seven SD news programmes and Bt140 million for each children’s channel.

The broadcasting committee will submit the draft to the NBTC board on May 22 and then go for public hearing within the next 30 days. After final revisions, the NBTC will announce it in the Royal Gazette and invite all potential bidders with an information memorandum soon.