DTAC puts B5bn more toward 3GSource: Thailand News - SRISAMORN PHOOSUPHANUSORN - Written on September 5th 2008DTAC earlier planned to make 3G available nationwide by mid-2009 under a five-billion-baht investment scheme. The company plans to introduce 3G services in three phases. The 1.2-billion-baht first phase will cover Bangkok in the first quarter of next year with 700 to 800 base stations. The second phase would cover Greater Bangkok as well as Chon Buri and Phuket, followed by the third phase covering the rest of the country. The first phase would focus on wireless broadband services available to laptop computers. Services would be expanded nationwide in the second stage to 3G handsets. CEO Sigve Brekke said an additional five billion baht is needed to ensure the company’s competitive leadership in 3G services in areas of nationwide network coverage, high-speed mobile broadband and innovative content. Mr Brekke said he was confident that DTAC will be the sole operator offering 3G service nationwide for at least one year, given its advantage of abundant analogue 850 MHz frequency that provides wider coverage capacity. He said DTAC was going ahead with the first phase of 3G development without any concern over political tensions. ”We expect to provide 3G services in Bangkok in the first quarter of next year and nationwide service by mid-2009 as scheduled,” he said. Mr Brekke admitted that its parent Telenor of Norway was closely monitoring the political situation in Thailand, but expressed no concern about it. He also said that DTAC would not need to revise revenue and subscriber growth targets for a second time as he believed people still needed communications even if political conditions were to worsen. DTAC to launch 3G in two provincessource: Bkk Post Mar 31 2008
DTAC, the country's second-largest mobile operator, is preparing to introduce High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) commercial services in Phuket and Chonburi as part of its five billion baht third-generation (3G) investment plan.
DTAC has been in talks with CAT Telecom to form a joint-venture firm to provide 3G services on the 850 MHz frequency. The NTC has also given approval to DTAC's larger rival, Advanced Info Service (AIS) to upgrade 30 base stations to HSPA in a programme expected to cost $20 million.
''If the NTC gives us approval shortly, we can start providing HSPA commercial services by the end of this year,'' Mr Brekke said. ''Phuket and Chon Buri will be the first two commercial provinces for HSPA.''
He said DTAC selected Phuket and Chonburi as they were small areas with high data communication usage and potential demand. Target customers in Phuket would be foreigners, and in Chonburi they would be factory owners and workers. He said DTAC would provide customers a simple package concept with a possible monthly fee of 450 baht and no limit on data volume usage.
DTAC will need to install additional 1,800 HSPA base stations for nationwide services. The company currently has 9,000 2G base stations.
Mr Brekke said DTAC planned to introduce HSPA services on a development platform consisting of network, content and handsets. Data communications services would be designed for laptop users while music, television and video streaming would be for handset customers.
He said the 850 MHz frequency offered a great advantage over others including 900 MHz due to its wider coverage and ability to work with a variety of devices.
DTAC, he added, would not wait for 3G licences from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) due to the unclear policy.
''We are definitely moving into HSPA where the technology doesn't need a new licence, as it can be operated under the existing concession,'' he said.
source: Bkk Post Mar 31 2008 The section below was updated in February 2008
All of Thailand, including remote regions, now have EDGE coverage. AIS has been the most productive being the first to have a full countrywide system, Dtac has now extended into the remote rural areas.
Whether you are located in a city or up country, we still prefer Dtac for quality-of-service and near 100% reliability. The Dtac service is by far the most reliable internet in Thailand, the speed is consistent, coupled with almost zero downtime, and is far superior to ADSL if reliability is important.
Both Dtac and AIS have indicated that they intend to deploy 3G once the EDGE project is completed. We do not know when this will start; however, looking back over the years they have taken a consistent approach of finishing one project before starting the next. About fifteen years ago the first generation mobile phone network was deployed, next came GPRS the second generation data network, followed by EDGE which is classified as 2.5G. When EDGE is completed 3G will begin.
We are now stocking 3G cards which will be compatible with the future network as well as backward compatible with the already existing networks of EDGE and GPRS. The Sierra Wireless 875 is now available from the website. It will automatically select the fastest available network without having to make manual changes. So, if EDGE is available but 3G is not, then it will default to EDGE. The Sierra Wireless 875 is also compatible with the North American / Canadian standard which is on a different frequency to the European / Asian standard. In other words, the Sierra Wireless 875 gives global compatability for 3G, EDGE and GPRS.
If your computer has an Expresscard slot then the Novatel Merlin XU870 will be compatible. Similar in fuctionality to the Sierra Wireless 875 it will operate globally on either the North American / Canadian standard or the European / Asian standard. It is backward and forward compatible with the following standards: GPRS, EDGE, 3G (HSDPA/UMTS), as well as being compatible with a future, undefined standard (subject to a firmware upgrade), the ultimate top speed will be 7.2Mbps.
Reliability
It cannot be emphasised enough that both GPRS and EDGE run faultlessly. The network has almost zero down time, clicking on "connect" gives a connection within three seconds, everytime. Some customers, with unlimited-use contracts, leave their connection open twenty four hours per day, the card will very rarely spontaneously disconnect. The new EDGE network has all the reliabilty features of the old GPRS network: easy to connect, high network reliabilty, continual stability, along with higher internet speeds.
Of all the different ways to connect to the internet GPRS / EDGE is proving to be the most reliable. Wide-area wireless technology has none of the inherent problems that dialup and ADSL suffer from; no water-logged landlines, no spontaneous disconnects, and no router problems. GPRS / EDGE will also operate during bad weather, thunder and lightning strike is not a concern because no landline is required and wireless technology, by definition, is not dependent on a vast network of fiber-optic cables and copper landlines that require constant care and maintenance.
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