NBTC board mull joint panel for debate on 700MHz

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission will consider at today’s board meeting the appointment of a joint panel from its telecom and broadcasting committees to address the future of the 700MHz band, watchdog chairman Thares Punsri said yesterday.

 The board regards the issue as an urgent matter, he said. 

 The NBTC has over the past few months been urged by international telecom organisations, from the International Telecom Union (ITU) to the Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT), and more recently the GSMA, to make it clear that the 700MHz band would be reserved for mobile broadband service, and not for terrestrial digital broadcasting, in line with international standards. Thares added that ITU secretary-general Hamadoun I Toure had discussed the issue with him a few months ago during a visit to Thailand.

 The NBTC’s broadcasting committee has allocated the 510-790MHz range for digital TV, but the NBTC’s telecom road map subcommittee has proposed that 698-806MHz be reserved for the future provisioning of mobile broadband in line with the standards of the ITU and the APT. 

 The subcommittee suggested that the broadcasting committee use 470-694MHz for digital TV broadcasts instead.

 Thares reaffirmed that the ongoing issue of the 700MHz would not affect the planned licensing of digital terrestrial TV licences.

 An NBTC source said the planned joint panel would solve the problem by working out a long-term plan to reclaim 470MHz for digital broadcasting and promote coordination between Thailand and its neighbours to prevent a possible spectrum jam.

 The NBTC’s telecom panel has already given a commitment to the broadcasting committee of its readiness to help the latter reclaim the 470MHz-510MHz range for digital TV broadcasting. 

 TOT owns the 470MHz spectrum band, which it uses to provide cellular service in remote areas.

 Malaysia has adopted 700MHz for mobile broadband service, which raises concern over possible jamming at the border if Thailand were to use the same band for digital TV broadcasting. 

 Broadcasting committee chairman Natee Sukonrat previously said Malaysia was not expected to utilise the 700MHz spectrum for broadband wireless service until 2020. By that time, the NBTC will be able to reclaim the range of 470MHz-510MHz for digital TV broadcasting.

 Thailand’s TV channels 3 and 7 are still airing on the band. The Frequency Allocation Act protects their concessions until they end, in 2020 for Channel 3 and in 2022 for Channel 7.

 The NBTC will also inform the APT Conference Preparatory Group for the World Radiocommunication Conference, which will hold a meeting in Thailand early next month, that at the moment it wants to reserve the 700MHZ for digital TV broadcasting first, pending settlement of the issue.

 In a separate matter, today’s NBTC board meeting will consider a plan to protect the interests of customers of 1800MHz cellular operators TrueMove and Digital Phone Co, whose concessions under CAT Telecom end on September 15.