5G rollout in Thailand

[PeteC]

Suvarnabhumi getting first crack at commercial 5G

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/1841599

Suvarnabhumi airport is on track to experience the first commercial 5G in Thailand by May, according to the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).

The move is part of the initial plan for the smart airport project.

The plan was addressed as the NBTC and Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT) signed a memorandum of understanding on 5G technical and service cooperation yesterday.

The event was witnessed by Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob and NBTC chairman Sukit Khamasundara.

The deal will also foster collaboration between related parties in the telecom and aviation industries, including the development of smart airport ecosystems and smart logistics.

The NBTC will auction off four spectrum ranges for the 5G licence auctions scheduled for Feb 16: 700MHz, 1800MHz, 2600MHz and 26GHz.

The auction is expected to generate 54 billion baht for the state.

According to the NBTC, bidders will be urged to consider rolling out the 5G network at the airport as a first priority, after which the ultra-fast wireless broadband service will be adopted in the Eastern Economic Corridor to cater to innovation.

NBTC secretary-general Takorn Tantasith said importation of 5G-related equipment and the network roll-out could come as soon as March and the initial phase of 5G adoption could begin in May.

"Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang international airports will serve as a flagship and national gateway of 5G tech adoption in Thailand, where visitors will experience ultra-fast wireless broadband service once they arrive," Mr Takorn said.

After that, 5G adoption could continue at four other airports operated by AoT when the right time for the ecosystem comes, he said.

According to Mr Takorn, several 5G use cases can be expected in airport operations, including facial recognition technology, smart security, smart logistics, smart healthcare services and smart transport.

[Nereus]

If anybody has any idea just WTF this is all about could they kindly inform the rest of us. I guess that the government can put it towards another submarine!
...…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
5G 2600MHz licences raise B37bn at auction

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/18 ... at-auction

Some 37.1 billion baht was raised from the auction of 19 licences in the 2600MHz range, contested by Advanced Info Service (AIS) through its subsidiary Advanced Wireless Network (AWN), True Move H Universal Communication (TUC) and CAT Telecom.

A total of 25 lots were bid on by the participants in the first round but the number went down to 19 in the second, which met the number of licences provided by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).

The final price on the range reached 1.95 billion baht per licence after the 40-minute auction that started at 12.50 pm.

The amount is only 5% higher than the reserve price of 1.86 billion baht per licence.
Each applicant is allowed to bid on up to 10 licences in the range.

The NBTC has yet to disclose which operators secured the licences on the band.

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission is holding 5G auctions at its office on Sunday.
...............................................................................................................…


5G auction on 700MHz bags B51bn

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/18 ... bags-b51bn
About 51.45 billion baht was raised from the auction of three 5G licences of 700MHz range, of three spectra put up for bidding on Sunday.

The range was contested from 9.30 am to 11.58 am by three bidders — Advanced Info Service (AIS), through its subsidiary Advanced Wireless Network (AWN), True Move H Universal Communication (TUC), and CAT Telecom.

The 700MHz range comes with three licences, each containing 5MHz of bandwidth with a reserve price of 8.7 billion baht.

The bidding lasted 19 rounds before the hammer fell, with the final price per lot (licence) at 17.15 billion baht. With three licences available, the total amount was 51.45 billion baht, excluding value-added tax.

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has yet to reveal which operators obtained the licences. On this range, each company can bid for up to three lots.

[Nereus]

AIS wins 23 5G licences in B100bn auction

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/18 ... bn-auction

Advanced Info Service Plc (AIS) won 23 5G spectrum licences, and True Move H Universal Communication Plc (True Move H) another 17, in auctions that raised over 100 billion baht on Sunday.

Total Access Communication Plc (DTAC) won two licences. Two state-run operators, CAT Telecom Plc and TOT Plc, won two and four licences respectively.

Takorn Tantasith, secretary-general of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), told a news conference the combined total for all 48 licences auctioned off raised a total of 100,521,177,777 baht excluding VAT.

CAT received two licences in the 700MHz range, while AIS won one.

AIS won 10 licences on 2600MHz and True Move H received nine licences.

AIS also bagged 12 licences on 26GHz and True Move H received eight. TOT and DTAC rounded out the 26GHz spectrum with four and two licences respectively.

Advanced Info Service entered the auction through its subsidiary Advanced Wireless Network (AWN) and DTAC joined through its subsidiary DTAC TriNet.

Commercial rollout of 5G services is expected later this year.

[Nereus]

AIS vows increased speeds of 2,400%

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/18 ... -of-2-400-

Mobile leader Advanced Info Service (AIS) is promising increased speeds of 2,400% on its future 5G service network on the 2600-megahertz band over its current network capacity, after securing the largest total spectrum of 1,450MHz of bandwidth for both uploads and downloads.

The company's existing 16 million customers for 4G service, who have smartphones that can cover the 2600MHz band, will also be entitled to 400% higher speed for mobile internet when the 2600MHz network is rolled out.

AIS chief consumer business officer Pratthana Leelapanang said the company plans to launch commercial 5G mobile applications along with 5G mobile devices in the near future.

The move would deliver "real benefits" to customers rather than focusing only on ultra-high-speed mobile broadband, said Mr Pratthana.

However, he declined to elaborate on the timeline of the 5G service roll-out or what kinds of applications AIS is developing.

Following Sunday's auction, AIS has a total of 1450MHz of bandwidth, covering low, medium and high frequency bands.
AIS's bandwidth is 40% more than its No.2 rival, Mr Pratthana said.

This bandwidth should enable AIS to deliver 4G network capacity at 3,000% higher than current network capacity, which means 2,400% higher mobile broadband speed than the present capacity, he said.

"It is expected that 30 smartphone models capable of 5G service will be available in the market this year," Mr Pratthana said.

AIS has prepared a 5G Trial Zone for customers to experience the 5G network and devices at AIS shops in Siam Paragon and CentralWorld.

He said AIS has secured partnerships with major global smartphone manufacturers to provide the best 5G network experience for Thais.

"AIS intends to invest in the full spectrum of the 5G block on all frequency ranges," said Mr Pratthana.

"We have studied and strategically analysed the market, determining we should hold the most spectrum for 5G services to create excellent benefits for Thais."

Wasit Wattanasap, head of nationwide operations and the support department, said AIS holds the widest bandwidth on all three spectrum, providing the most suitable range for providing 5G services with the highest efficiency that follows global standards for 5G technology and beyond.

Citing 5G technology standards set by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project, a standards organisation that develops protocols for mobile telephony, he said the 700MHz frequency range could be used at full capacity when it has full 30MHz of bandwidth.

This is the reason why AIS acquired 10MHz of bandwidth, which will be added to the existing 20MHz of bandwidth it occupied, said Mr Wasit.

[PeteC]

But...but...but, what happens when all this "high speed" hits Thailands censors/monitors and internet gateway? I think we'll be right where we are now concerning speeds for outside of Thailand websites and streaming services.

There will surely be a price increase associated with 5G service and devices. Do we bite before we know how it really works?

[buksida]

Exactly, without some unfettered international bandwidth in the bag 5G will be all but useless to anyone not wanting to stream Thai TV or play Facebook all day.

[Bluesky]

Exactly, without some unfettered international bandwidth in the bag 5G will be all but useless to anyone not wanting to stream Thai TV or play Facebook all day.

For the Government it will like gold. It will enable Artificial Intelligence technology which is currently available to be married up with 5G for rapidly finding anomalies via video analytics in large data sets. iCetana, an Australian company holds a large number of patents in this field and is currently working internationally with this technology.

As an excerpt from PeteC's post
"According to Mr Takorn, several 5G use cases can be expected in airport operations, including facial recognition technology, smart security, smart logistics, smart healthcare services and smart transport."

I have included a youtube clip to explain how this technology will impact using iCetana technology.


[youtube]

[buksida]

Absolutely, China already leads the way in facial recognition tech so that big brother knows exactly who is where - Thailand wants a piece of that action.

No wonder they banned Orwell's 1984.

[PeteC]

AIS debuts 5G coverage in Bangkok

https://www.bangkokpost.com/tech/187014 ... in-bangkok

....."Advanced Info Service (AIS), the mobile market leader, says it has expanded 5G coverage over 25 square kilometres in Bangkok and expects ultra-fast internet speeds to be adopted by various industrial sectors soon".......

[buksida]

AIS bullish on 5G prospects
Advanced Info Service (AIS), the country's largest mobile operator by subscribers, expects its 5G subscriber base will reach 1 million by the end of this year, thanks to the rise of 5G-enabled smartphones and 5G network roll-out nationwide.

The company had around 100,000 subscribers to its 5G services as of the end of last year, while data consumption is expected to surge by 20-30% this year.

AIS chief executive Somchai Lertsutiwong said the company has the largest spectrum portfolio in the market both in terms of the variety of frequency bands and bandwidth.

AIS holds 30 megahertz of bandwidth on the 700MHz band. The range should increase its 5G network coverage throughout the country, he said.

The company on Wednesday paid the first instalment of 1.88 billion baht for its 700MHz spectrum licence to the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).

AIS is scheduled to be awarded the 700MHz licence tomorrow, covering 20MHz of bandwidth. The company already obtained another 10MHz of bandwidth on the range from the 5G spectrum auction held last February.

Mr Somchai said the company's 3,000 base stations on the 700MHz network will be switched on by the end of this month.

As the company holds the largest subscriber base and largest amount of bandwidth on the 700MHz range, investment in base stations would be more economically efficient with a bigger return per unit than its two major competitors, he said.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/20 ... -prospects

[Thailightzone]

Like 4G before it, 5G is an overused term for marketing.

It's 5G subscriber base may in fact reach 1 million by years end, but 0.001% of them will be connecting to 5G.

One plan is that the next generation of modems provided to home & business internet users will have open 5G access points built-in that will help build out the network. Other than that the providers are going to have to start installing the short range 5G points everywhere.

I think it will in fact be commercial & government enterprises that build out access first - shopping malls, train stations, airports, etc


Sent from my SM-T860 using Tapatalk

[handdrummer]

How will, if it will, affect a phone call or computer use? Will I be able to talk faster and say more in a shorter period of time, will my typing speed increase or will I be able to read what's on the screen faster? I'm digitally illiterate and don't understand the benefits to normal humans of a 5G network.
Also, can I still use my 3G dumb phone?

[Thailightzone]

How will, if it will, affect a phone call or computer use? Will I be able to talk faster and say more in a shorter period of time, will my typing speed increase or will I be able to read what's on the screen faster? I'm digitally illiterate and don't understand the benefits to normal humans of a 5G network.
Also, can I still use my 3G dumb phone?

No, it is not for current use scenarios. Start to think about applications which need very low latency & high bandwidth, like for instance one of the first applications will be massively multiplayer 8K gaming on mobile devices, augmented reality glasses providing real-time updates, self-driving cars, drones.

Here is one example: The technology currently exists, and is proven, to perform real-time language translation - that is translation of your language/voice/tone/pitch into another language almost instantaneously - imagine the worldwide implications of just this single technology alone. But it is currently hampered by slow wireless internet connection.

Another eventual benefit, because of the number of transmitters that will eventually be rolled out, will be the ability to pinpoint your location with greater accuracy than GPS when you are for instance inside a building. The mapping companies will start mapping internal building diagrams. Your Tesco shopping app will be able to take you directly to the isle where the rice crispies are.

Oh and I just saw bluesky's post ...
Facial recognition & tracking, and they mean facial recognition of all 1000 people walking out of the subway at a given time.

[handdrummer]

How will, if it will, affect a phone call or computer use? Will I be able to talk faster and say more in a shorter period of time, will my typing speed increase or will I be able to read what's on the screen faster? I'm digitally illiterate and don't understand the benefits to normal humans of a 5G network.
Also, can I still use my 3G dumb phone?

No, it is not for current use scenarios. Start to think about applications which need very low latency & high bandwidth, like for instance one of the first applications will be massively multiplayer 8K gaming on mobile devices, augmented reality glasses providing real-time updates, self-driving cars, drones.

Here is one example: The technology currently exists, and is proven, to perform real-time language translation - that is translation of your language/voice/tone/pitch into another language almost instantaneously - imagine the worldwide implications of just this single technology alone. But it is currently hampered by slow wireless internet connection.

Another eventual benefit, because of the number of transmitters that will eventually be rolled out, will be the ability to pinpoint your location with greater accuracy than GPS when you are for instance inside a building. The mapping companies will start mapping internal building diagrams. Your Tesco shopping app will be able to take you directly to the isle where the rice crispies are.

Oh and I just saw bluesky's post ...
Facial recognition & tracking, and they mean facial recognition of all 1000 people walking out of the subway at a given time.

Thank you, I can understand that.

I didn't know that Tesco had Rice Krispies. They used to have maple syrup but don't carry it anymore.

[Thailightzone]

Hahahaha OMG that was a funny response. And now that you spelt it correctly my mind is at ease (I kept staring that crispies thinking that ain't right)