BANGKOK – The Digital Economy and Society Minister, Buddhipongse Punnakanta, has visited the United States of America to attract more investment to Thailand’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) and has instructed agencies to accelerate the adoption of the fifth generation (5G) of mobile technology to increase the confidence of investors.
The Digital Economy and Society Minister said he and a group of officials visited the US to invite major technology companies to invest in Thailand. During the visit, the Thai officials presented the digital landscape of Thailand to US entrepreneurs. The plan to develop the EEC as the digital hub of ASEAN drew keen interest from many US business executives, thanks to its investment privileges, and incentives to help boost market expansion.
The Thai delegates also had the opportunity to meet executives of popular social media platforms, including Facebook, Google and YouTube, to discuss ways to address fake news and inappropriate video clips, as they create a negative image of the country. Facebook executives agreed to exchange information with the Ministry of a Digital Economy and Society to deal with the spread of false content and outline clear steps to address the problem.
This year, the Ministry of a Digital Economy and Society is expediting the 5G network roll-out. State telecom enterprises TOT and CAT Telecom will take part in the auction of the 5G spectrum at the Office of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) on February 16 this year. The move is in line with the government’s policy to develop the country’s digital economy and build a modern telecommunications infrastructure.
Concerning the government’s plan to establish the National Telecommunications (NT) Company, the cabinet meeting approved a proposal to merge TOT and CAT Telecom on January 14, 2020. The government will hire advisors who specialize in legal issues, mergers and human resources to study the business plan and all related activities. The two agencies will complete the merger within six months.
