National Telecom (NT) has set a conservative target of reaching 3.5 million mobile subscribers over the next few years after it deploys mobile service on the 700-megahertz spectrum range.
The telecom state enterprise, which was formed through the merger of CAT Telecom and TOT in 2021, has about 2 million subscribers.
The business plan for the 700MHz range is expected to be approved by the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC) early this year, said NT president Col Sanphachai Huvanandana.
He said the NESDC had requested more details on the 700MHz business project and NT has submitted them.
NT obtained the 700-MHz spectrum licence through CAT Telecom, which participated in the 5G spectrum licence auction held in February 2020. NT has not yet capitalised on the 700MHz range following the auction.
At that time, CAT Telecom secured 20MHz of bandwidth on the 700MHz spectrum range worth 34.3 billion baht.
Col Sanphachai said the mobile business landscape has dramatically changed over the past two years.
"The business model therefore needs to be adjusted in line with digital innovations and competition," he said.
In 2021, Taiwan-based telecom giant Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) was interested in serving as a marketing arm for NT's 5G service on 700MHz band through a joint venture with NT.
However, CHT has now chosen to partner with NT only to develop 5G private network via the 2.6-gigahertz spectrum range instead, he said. The 2.6GHz band was secured by TOT in the auction in 2020.
Col Sanphachai said CHT may consider participating in the 700MHz project based on a business-to-business model.
NT will mainly operate the mobile services on the 700MHz range on its own with 10MHz of bandwidth, he said.
NT, CHT and The WhiteSpace (WSP), a mobile virtual network operator, earlier worked together to provide a 5G private network at a factory of electronics manufacturer Delta Electronics (Thailand) at Bangpoo Industrial Estate in Samut Prakan, enabling the plant to capitalise on 5G technology.
The trio signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation on a 5G private network in December 2021.
In September 2022, NT announced a partnership with CHT to develop smart solutions for enterprises through the 5G private network.
The solutions are expected to be available starting in July 2023.
The first batch of smart solutions involves over 10 use cases in manufacturing, agriculture, telehealth, smart living and smart cities.
Col Sanphachai said the mobile service is becoming saturated and NT has to gear up for Internet of Things business and provide 5G-related solutions for the market.
NT earlier picked leading mobile operator Advanced Info Service (AIS) as its business partner for the 700MHz business.
No agreement has been signed yet, as the deal still needs to pass NESDC vetting and be acknowledged by the cabinet.
Under the deal, AIS will buy 10MHz of bandwidth on the 700MHz spectrum from NT, half of the 20MHz of bandwidth on the range held by NT.
AIS will pay NT's remaining costs to the regulator for the 10MHz bandwidth on the frequency.
NT would rent AIS's cellular network and related equipment in order to provide its 5G services on the remaining 10MHz of bandwidth, with a rental fee paid to AIS until the spectrum licence expires.
As part of the deal, AIS would also facilitate NT services through future network collaboration.