Thailand in sight of $37bn Internet market
THAILAND 'S fast-growing Internet market is on track to reach $37 billion (Bt1.33 trillion) within a decade, making it rich in digital opportunities, according to Google and Temasek.
The country's online market is growing at 9 per cent annually and is projected to hit 59 million users by 2020 from 38 million users last year.
The online market here is set to reach the $37 billion mark |by 2025, of which e-commerce and travel will make up over 88 |per cent, the two companies reported in their study on the |"e-conomy SEA: Unlocking the $200 billion opportunity in Southeast Asia".
The driver is Thailand's young, increasingly affluent and highly connected population.
About 57 per cent of the population has access to the Internet and over 85 million mobile subscribers (125 per cent penetration rate) are on 3G and LTE.
These connections are the second fastest in Southeast Asia , with a download speed of 19.82 megabits per second.
Other key findings from the research are the opportunities for commerce, which are set to grow 29 per cent annually from $900,000 $0.9 billion in 2015 to $11 billion in 2025, and for the online travel industry, which is expected to grow 5.2 times by 2025, reaching around $21.7 billion.
; and opportunities for online rides, which are predicted to grow to $1.9 billion by 2025 in Thailand.Digital advertising spending is projected to increase by 6.2 times to $4.35 billion over the period.
The report highlights that Thailand is a great place to run a startup since the country is already home to 358 of them.
While the opportunities are there, the country needs to overcome some key challenges including logistics and connectivity, complexity of payments, market readiness, fraud and cybersecurity.
The most pressing is investment.
Ben King, manager of Google Thailand, said last week that with all the advantages that the Internet brings with it, there has never been a better time to start a business in Thailand.
"I am confident we can overcome the challenges," he said. "Already there are great examples of Thai businesses and startups leading the way in Southeast Asia and beyond.
"At Google, we're committed to helping businesses like them - from the largest e-commerce players to the smallest local stores - reach new customers in Thailand and around the world."