samtel

Industry and Competitive Analysis
In 2012, Thai economy projected an expansion rate of 5.7% due to the growth of domestic demand, both in private
consumption and investment. These spending are supported by government’s stimulus measures e.g. the higher minimum
wage policy for low-income workers and government officials, first-time car buyer program, first-time house buyer project, and
the corporate income tax reduction. Headline inflation in 2012 is rated 3.0%, decreasing from the previous year.
For the Information Communications Technology (ICT) sector, the growth has risen from last year up to 9-10%, bringing the
gross market value of 270,000 million Baht; the mobile phone sector has captured 76% of total value which accounts for
200,000 million Baht. The remarkable surge was affected by the third generation (3G) communication network upgrading, and
the continued expansion of smart phone and tablet market that boosted up the number of internet technology and 3G user.
Meanwhile, lots of organization turned to concentrate on internal mobility and cloud computing in accordance with Bring-
Your-Own-Device (BYOD) trend that assists in working effectiveness and flexibility. On the other hand, an implication of big
data over the social network fueled the data base improvement at the expense of ICT budget.
The Thai economy in 2013 is projected to grow at a rate of 5.0%. In spite of private demand slowdown reflected by the
cease of government accelerating factors at year end 2012, the positive growth figure is offset by the government’s heavy
investment and the improvement of global economy. The inflation rate is anticipated at 3.0%.
Considering the Information Communications Technology (ICT) market in 2013, the growth is expected at 13% and the figure
possibly soars up to 25% by 2016-2017 following the 3G technology implementation. After the 2.1 GHz frequency allocation,
so called 3G spectrum auction, was carried out by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC),
massive investment has taken place to provide the network services; other related industries were stimulated respectively e.g.
software development, applications and contents. The investment in network infrastructure, data center and computer security
were boost up likewise. Furthermore, the upcoming auction of the digital television under the NBTC transition policy also
promotes the investment in ICT sectors.
Source of Reference
1. Finance Information Group, Office of the Permanent Secretary, Thailand 2012 - 2013 Economic Projection, Ministry of
Finance news Issue 141/2012, 26th December 2012
2. An interview of Mr. Thakorn Tantasit, Secretary of NBTC, 2013 Telecommunication Catch Up, Matichon, 3rd January
2013, Website : http://www.matichon.co.th/news_detail.php?newsid=1357214052&grpid=03&catid=03
3. An interview of Mr. Natakorn Pojjanasuj, Country Manager, EMC Information System (Thailand) Co., Ltd., EMC 2012
Market Summary 2012 and 2013 Trends, Blognone: IT News, 6th December 2012, Website : http://www.blognone.com/
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Annual Report 2012