Internet rules seen as risk to tech drive

Taking part in a panel discussion at a seminar titled “Examine Thailand’s Internet in the era of Thailand 4.0(?)”, they urged action on the government’s part to resolve the apparent contradictions between government regulations and the state-led drive to upgrade the country’s technological base.
The seminar, hosted by Chulalongkorn University, paves the way for the Asia Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum 2017 hosted by the university and the National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission from July 26-29.
Somkiat Tangkitvanich, president of the Thailand Development Research Institute Foundation, described Thailand 4.0 as a good vision but said the government had introduced Internet-related policies that appeared to not support its own vision.
 “The Thailand 4.0 vision and the Internet-related policies need to be compatible,” Somkiat said. “The question is, whether these Internet-related policies are appropriate and whether they can support this good vision.”
Somkiat cited the fact that many innovative products and services are prohibited in Thailand, such as the Uber taxi service, 3D printing and drones. Such actions obstruct the flow of ideas that business startups need in order to make a contribution and become key drivers of the economy in the Thailand 4.0 era, he said.
Somkiat also took aim at the government’s efforts to regulate the providers of so-called over the top content on Internet platforms. Rules that could restrict these operators would undermine the country’s technology goals, he said.
“Thailand’s economy is not big enough for us to ignore investment from overseas, so inappropriate Internet-related policies will halt investment flows and obstruct the implementation of Thailand 4.0,” Somkiat said.
Pacharasut Sujarittanonta, a lecturer in the faculty of economics at Chulalongkorn University, said that the penetration rate for the Internet in Thailand is 60 per cent of the population and social media giant Facebook enjoys a similar level, while the mobile penetration rate tops 100 per cent.
“But there is still a digital divide because the Internet coverage does not reach all the people in all the areas, especially the last-mile areas,” Pacharasut said.
He said that even though the government has introduced two schemes – one that seeks to extend coverage to almost 25,000 villages and another to connect 15,000 villages – both of these focus on the feeder network, not the so-called last mile. 
“Nowadays, Thailand has 80 per cent coverage for mobile networks. Mobile provides the opportunity to connect people in the last-mile areas, but the government’s Internet related policies favour the laying down of fibre cables, which is duplicated among the schemes, and these will not end at the last mile at all,” said Pacharasut.
He suggested the government should “re-farm” the frequencies, especially 700 MHz frequency, which has nationwide coverage, low cost and supports 4G. Such a move would connect people to the last mile.
“There is no need to lay down a fibre network, which is duplicated investment among the government’s Internet-related schemes and comes at a higher cost and fails to reach the last mile,” Pacharasut said. 
Kanchana Kanchanasut, vice president of the THNIC Foundation, said that Thailand has the ability to become a connectivity hub in Indo-China. She urged the government to adjust regulations on Internet connectivity to allow the content delivery network, point of presence, and Internet service providers in any countries to connect to the Internet exchange point. 
“This would “reduce the cost of connections and increase Internet user experience”.
Morakot Kulatumyotin, president of service provider Internet Thailand, said that since Internet is a element in the country’s digital transformation, the government’s Internet policies should balance a range of issues, including privacy, while promoting harmony in society.