Modern telecommunications in Thailand began in 1875 with the deployment of the first telegraph service. Historically, the development of telecommunication networks in Thailand were in the hands of the public sector. Government organisations were established to provide telegraph, telephone, radio, and television services, and other government agencies, especially the military, still control a large estate of radio and television spectra. Private telecommunication operators initially acquired concession agreements with state enterprises. For mobile phone services, all the concessions have been amended by successive government to last 25 years have gradually ended in 2015. For other services, the concession terms and conditions vary, ranging from one to fifteen years. Nearly all of the concessions are build-operate-transfer (BTO) contracts. The private investor has to build all the required facilities and transfer them to the state before they can operate or offer services to public.
Telenor ASA is a Norwegian majority state-owned multinational telecommunications company headquartered at Fornebu in Bærum, close to Oslo. It is one of the world's largest mobile telecommunications companies with operations worldwide, but focused in Scandinavia and Asia. It has extensive broadband and TV distribution operations in four Nordic countries, and a 10-year-old research and business line for machine-to-machine technology. Telenor owns networks in 8 countries.
T-Mobile is the brand name used by some of the mobile communications subsidiaries of the German telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom AG in the Czech Republic, Poland and the United States.
Emirates Telecommunications Group Company PJSC, doing business as etisalat by e& is an Emirati-based multinational telecommunications services provider, currently operating in 16 countries across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. It is the 18th largest mobile network operator in the world by number of subscribers. In December 2020, Etisalat claimed to provide the world's fastest 5G download speed at 9.1 Gigabits per second, a network that has started rolling out in Dubai since 2017. Etisalat is one of the strongest brands in the Middle East and Africa and one of the strongest telecoms brand in the world.
The Charoen Pokphand Group Company, Ltd. (CP) is a Thai conglomerate based in Bangkok. It is Thailand's largest private company and the largest privately held Royal Warrant holder of the Thai Royal Family. The company describes itself as having eight business lines covering 13 business groups. As of 2020, the group has investments in 21 countries.
Bharti Airtel Limited, commonly known as Airtel, is an Indian multinational telecommunications services company based in New Delhi. It operates in 18 countries across South Asia and Africa, as well as the Channel Islands. Currently, Airtel provides 5G, 4G and LTE Advanced services all over India. Currently offered services include fixed-line broadband, and voice services depending upon the country of operation. Airtel had also rolled out its Voice over LTE (VoLTE) technology across all Indian telecom circles. It is the second largest mobile network operator in India and the second largest mobile network operator in the world. Airtel was named India's 2nd most valuable brand in the first ever Brandz ranking by Millward Brown and WPP plc.
CAT Telecom Public Company Limited is the state-owned company that runs Thailand’s international telecommunications infrastructure, including its international gateways, satellite, and submarine cable networks connections. Since 2021 CAT Telecom became the National Telecom Public Company Limited after merging with TOT Public Company Limited.
Hutchison Asia Telecom Group or HAT, is a division of Hong Kong-based multinational conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings. The division provides telecommunications services to several Asian countries. The division was formerly incorporated as Hutchison Telecommunications International Limited, known as Hutchison Telecom or HTIL in short. It was an offshore company in the Cayman Islands and a listed company in the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong. It operates GSM, 3G and 4G mobile telecommunications services in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Vietnam under brands 3, Hutch and Vietnamobile.
True Corporation Public Company Limited (TRUE) is a communications conglomerate in Thailand. It is a joint venture between Charoen Pokphand Group and Telenor, formed by the merger between the original True Corporation and DTAC in the form of equal partnership to create a new telecommunications company that can fully meet the needs of the digital age. True controls Thailand's largest cable TV provider, TrueVisions, Thailand's largest internet service provider True Online, Thailand's largest mobile operators, TrueMove H and DTAC TriNet, which is second and third only to AIS. and entertainment media including television, internet, online games, and mobile phones under the True Digital brand. As of August 2014, True, along with True Telecommunications Growth Infrastructure Fund, had a combined market capitalization of US$10 billion. TrueMove is also a partner of Vodafone Group. Charoen Pokphand Group and Telenor hold equal ownership of 30% of True's shares as of March 2023. It operates fixed-line, wireless, cable TV, IPTV and broadband services.
Total Access Communication Public Company Limited, commonly known as DTAC, is a GSM mobile phone company in Thailand. It is the nation's third largest GSM phone company, after AIS and True. DTAC is owned by Norwegian company Telenor both directly and indirectly, and both companies share the same logo. As of 31 December 2011, DTAC had 23.2 million subscribers with a market share of subscribers at around 30 percent. As of 2019, the company has 20.642 million mobile subscriptions and 3904 employees. It is listed on the Singapore Exchange and the Stock Exchange of Thailand.
Unifi Mobile is a Malaysian internet service provider and the country's sixth mobile network operator. Originally known as Packet One Networks (P1), the company was founded on 11 February 2002 and is currently a subsidiary of the national telephone company, Telekom Malaysia.
Free Mobile S.A.S. is a French telecommunications company, subsidiary of Free S.A.S. that provides wireless Internet to consumers in France. It was the fourth mobile network operator to obtain a metropolitan French 3G license in 2009. It also obtained a 4G license in 2011.
Hutchison Telecommunications Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, d.b.a. Hutch is a Sri Lankan telecommunication service provider and the country's third largest mobile network operator, with approximately 5.3 million subscribers of the Sri Lankan mobile market as of May 2023.
Suphachai Chearavanont is a Thai businessman, and CEO of C.P. Group, a multinational conglomerate owned by his father. Also chairman of telecommunications company True Corporation, of which he was the CEO from 1999, until 2017, when he was named C.P. Group's CEO. Also a vice chairman at Charoen Pokphand Foods and CP ALL, he is a director at companies including TrueMove and TrueVisions. Also he is a chairman of CP Axtra, Retail e-commerce and wholesale business.
TrueMoney is a financial technology brand, providing e-payment services in Southeast Asia. In Thailand, the platform includes TrueMoney Wallet, WeCard by MasterCard, TrueMoney Cash Card, Kiosk, Express, Payment Gateway and Remittance.
True4U is a Thai digital terrestrial television channel owned by True4U Station Company Limited, a unit of TrueVisions, a subsidiary of True Corporation, part of the Charoen Pokphand Group and Telenor. It broadcasts news, entertainment and sport programs. True4U is broadcasting on Thailand digital television platform on channel 24.
Pakistan Mobile Communications Limited (PMCL), doing business as Jazz, (Urdu: جاز) is Pakistan's largest mobile network and internet services provider formed by the merger of Mobilink and Warid Pakistan.
Idea Cellular (commonly referred to as Idea was an Indian mobile network operator based at Mumbai, Maharashtra. Idea was a pan-India integrated GSM operator and had 220.00 million subscribers as of June 2018. Idea Cellular merged with Vodafone and is now known as Vodafone Idea or Vi.
Line Mobile - Finn Mobile is a division by Line Corporation operates mobile virtual network operator service in Japan and Taiwan, while in Thailand it operates as a light MVNO service provide ( MVNO network structure By TRUE MOVE H UNIVERSAL COMMUNICATION CO.,LTD. r. Unlike LINE's other service LINE Out, Finn Mobile offers SIM card plans.
A corporate merger between True Corporation and DTAC, Thailand's second- and third–largest mobile network operators, has been in progress since its first public announcement on 22 November 2021. The deal, which would make the combined entity the largest mobile network ahead of current market leader AIS and reduce the mobile provider market to a duopoly, has been strongly opposed by academics and civil society groups as detrimental to consumers and the public interest. The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) acknowledged the merger with certain conditions on 20 October 2022, though there had been some legal uncertainty over whether the NBTC had authority to approve such a merger and whether the Trade Competition Commission should be involved. Petitions challenging the decision were made to the Administrative Court in November, by the Thailand Consumers Council and AIS.
