The value of the digital content industry in Thailand this year is expected to reach 33 billion baht, up 10% from 2018 thanks to rising demand for animation and games in the global market as well as business development and promotion by the private sector and state, says the Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP).
The character industry is a prime target for the government’s promotion strategy as its growth is higher than the overall economy’s expansion, said Chakarin Komolsiri, assistant director-general of the DITP.
The government wants to drive the country to become an Asian digital content industry hub this year through a “Digital Co-creation” collaboration with all sectors, including the government and industrial players.
“Thailand has produced, consumed and implemented digital content at a very high value per year for the past five years,” said Mr Chakarin.
He said Thai entrepreneurs in the digital content industry have high potential, capability and creativity.
Supporting entrepreneurs through cooperation between the private and state sectors will help economic growth in line with the government's Thailand 4.0 policy, meant to create an economy driven by innovation and technology.
This would be a boon for digital content industries, including animation, gaming, characters, e-learning, computer graphics, virtual reality, as well as new technologies and education, said Mr Chakarin.
He was speaking on Wednesday at the launch of Bangkok International Digital Content Festival 2019 (BIDC), hosted by DITP, the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau and the Digital Economy Promotion Agency in cooperation with Line Creators market.
The event features five digital content associations, comprising the Thai Animation & Computer Graphics Association, Digital Content Association of Thailand, E-Learning Association of Thailand, Bangkok ACM SIGGRAPH and the Thai Game Software Industry Association.