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Published on December 13, 2007

The 12 are True Move, True Universal Communications, Nokia-Siemens, Ericsson, Loxley, CAT Telecom, TOT, Samart Telcoms-Provincial Electricity Authority, Transpacific Thailand, Triple T Broadband, Shin Satellite and United Communication Industry.

Recently, Wide Broadband, a subsidiary of Total Access Communication, applied for similar permission to test Wi-Max from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).

Wi-Max - short for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access - provides wireless data at high-speed over long distances. Telecom operators aim to utilise Wi-Max to complement their existing wireline broadband services.

NTC chairman Choochart Phromprasid said the licensing body had opened for interested companies to apply to test Wi-Max, upon which business operation regulations are expected to be imposed next year.

However, the NTC has yet to finish drawing up the terms and conditions of awarding the licences to operate 3G cellular broadband spectrums, which would enable telecom operators to offer bandwidth-hungry contents such as video-phone service at a fast speed.

Usanee Mongkolporn

 The Nation