Billionaires yet to talk on BBTV's digital channel hopes

“Prasert Prasarttong-Osoth, the owner of Bangkok Media and Broadcasting, has not talked with BBTV chairman Krit Ratanarak about this so far. And he has no need to do so,” the source told The Nation yesterday. 

A local newspaper reported that the two billionaires had reached an agreement to bid jointly for a variety HD channel under Bangkok Media and Broadcasting while BBTV, the operator of Channel 7, would drop its plan to apply for this TV licence. 

It was believed that Krit, 67, who has estimated net worth of US$3.9 billion (Bt122 billion), wanted to solve an intense conflict between BBTV and Surang Prempree’s Chan 25, a soap-opera production company, as Surang is a major shareholder in both companies. Together, Surang and her spouse hold about 21 per cent of BBTV shares. 

Under the rules set for the licence auction by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, in such a situation, both companies would risk disqualification if they submitted applications to bid for the same licence category. The application period will start on Monday. This month, Chan 25’s legal adviser Surachai Danaitangtrakul revealed that his company had received several requests from BBTV for talks to prevent a clash of interests between the two parties. 

In BBTV’s first letter, it urged Chan 25 to drop its plan to apply for a licence for a digital variety HD channel. The second letter called on Surang to pave the way for BBTV by selling some of her shares so as to reduce her holding to less than 10 per cent. 

Besides negotiating a solution with Chan 25, talking with other companies on the possibility of a joint bid seems to be among the top choices for BBTV. 

However, the source at Bangkok Media and Broadcasting stressed that Prasert wished to run this media outlet alone if he could secure a licence.

Prasert has net worth of $1.85 billion from his businesses including Bangkok Airways and Bangkok Dusit Medical Service, the operator of the Bangkok Hospital, BNH Hospital and Samitivej Hospital chains. The source pointed to big projects that reflected his genuine ambition to expand into broadcasting. Prasert, 80, formed THN Network to operate the English-language 24-hour IN Channel on TrueVisions, the country’s leading pay-TV operator. 

Once the auction for 24 commercial digital terrestrial TV licences drew near, in Prasert registered Bangkok Media and Broadcasting with Bt100-million capital in March, and this month, the company introduced a new satellite channel named PPTV.

PPTV dedicates 55 per cent of its airtime to entertainment program-mes, 25 per cent for news, 10 per cent for social support and the remaining 10 per cent for educational programmes, according to its official website. 

The source said that if the company secured a licence to operate a commercial digital terrestrial channel, it would be used to air PPTV. Meanwhile, the teams at IN Channel would produce some programmes for PPTV.