4G licence auction likely in August, Pornchai says
Information and Communi-cations Technology Minister Pornchai Rujiprapa has said he is confident that the long-awaited auction of 4G spectrum licences will be held by this August.
The planned ad-hoc digital economy committee chaired by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is expected to hold its first meeting in the middle of this month to prepare the national digital economy policy, he said.
Deputy Prime Minister Pridiyathorn Devakula is expected to table details at the meeting of the impending 4G auction.
Pornchai said he would meet with Pridiyathorn today to finalise the agenda for the meeting.
Once the ad-hoc committee completes the national digital economy policy, it will propose |the policy to the National Council for Peace and Order for consideration.
The NCPO is expected to decide if the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) can resume preparing for the 4G auction.
"As far as I know, the NBTC can take six months to launch the auction, since it has already prepared the auction plan. I’m certain that the auction will take place by August," he said.
The NBTC had intended to open bidding for the 1,800MHz bandwidths of both TrueMove and Digital Phone Co in the middle of last year, but in July the junta ordered the NBTC to suspend the auction for one year, pending thorough clarification of the auction plan.
The spectrum can be used for 4G wireless broadband service.
The NBTC has asked the NCPO if it can begin preparing for the auction but the regulator has yet to receive any signal on the matter.
The current government regards 4G wireless broadband technology as one of the building blocks for the digital economy.
Takorn Tantasith, secretary-general of the NBTC, said the licensing body could kick off the auction process within six months after the junta gives the nod. "Personally I believe the auction will be held by August," he said.
An NBTC source said the NCPO needs all parties, such as the ad-hoc digital economy committee, to |give their opinions on the 4G auction plan before it can make a decision.
An ICT ministry source has said the junta wants to see the state telecom enterprises and private telecom concession holders settle all their disputes over the ownership of telecom networks under their concessions before it gives the go ahead to the auction.
Recently the State Enterprise Policy Commission instructed TOT and CAT Telecom to start negotiations with their counterparts to clear such conflicts.
Pornchai said TOT and CAT do not have to reach the same solutions. But the principle is that |the networks were supposed to belong to state enterprises since the concessions were granted, so they could utilise these assets for national broadband services, he said.
