COMMUNICATIONS

Convergence is at hand

Srisamorn Phoosuphanusorn

THE CONVERGENCE between wireless technology and broadband Internet is finally getting under way in Thailand this year with heavy promotional support from major mobile phone companies.

Operators are pushing their wireless networking into every facet of life from cars and homes to office buildings and factories.

Thailand might not be ready for third-generation or 3G mobile services _ few countries are, in fact _ but local operators are making increased use of 2.5G technologies such as GPRS (general packet radio service), an effective and interim upgrade of the existing GSM infrastructure. CDMA and Wi-Fi technologies are also finding favour. Operators are finding the technologies a useful marketing tool for ventures such as mobile commerce and mobile entertainment.

The number of GPRS users in Thailand has gone from zero to 800,000 since the start of 2003, while the number of MMS (multimedia messaging service) messages sent has reached almost one million a month.

Advanced Info Service (AIS) has taken the lead in building a "wireless society" by broadening its MobileLife content offerings and promoting a variety of GPRS packages. Other operators, meanwhile, are also promoting the convergence between telecommunications and data communication services.

Most mobile phone operators are looking to have nationwide coverage for their GPRS networks within this year, compared with around 30 major provinces covered currently.

TA Orange has earmarked 10 billion baht for 1,200 base stations to cover all of the country by the end of next year, in a bid to capitalise on booming demand for data application services for mobile phones and to increase value-added services.

AIS hopes to increase its non-voice revenue to between 7.5 billion and eight billion baht this year, compared with five billion last year, according to Suvit Arayavilaipong, assistant vice-president for the wireless services business unit. Second-ranked DTAC expects to see the non-voice revenue double to three billion baht this year.

AIS expects its MMS traffic to double to 12 million messages this year, boosted by a recently announced partnership with rival DTAC to provide cross-network messaging services to their combined 21 million customers.

AIS has also taken the initiative on GPRS service charges, by replacing tariffs based on material downloaded with a rate of one baht per minute, in packages ranging from 200 to 1,500 baht.

The company predicted the new tariff would double the number of its GPRS users to 1.2 million this year. Revenues from non-voice services should also double from the previous year, it said, while revenue from data service is expected to exceed 100%.

According to Kittsanan Ngamphatipong, senior vice-president for marketing of AIS, the wireless society is a trend that the company believes will be increasingly popular among consumers and enterprises, as more information comes to be delivered via Internet Protocol (IP).

Innovative 3G technologies such as Edge (Enhanced Digital Global Evolution), a data-optimised one that can support a minimum of 144kbps in mobile situations and 2Mbps in fixed installations such as offices or hotspot area, is the operators' pipeline for next year.

Major handset makers, meanwhile, have outlined their vision for seamless mobility and converged networks to capitalise on the changing lifestyle of consumers. They have been introducing more large colour screens, data content-enabled handsets, and more segmented and fashion-oriented phones _ to accommodate consumers who use mobile phone as an instrument to express their personal style and tastes.