State enterprise National Telecom (NT) has asked the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) to allocate to it 10 megahertz of bandwidth on any spectrum band on a free basis.
NT wants to utilise the spectrum to provide an Internet of Things-related service and smart solutions for state agencies, according to NT president Col Sanphachai Huvanandana.
The state enterprise prefers middle-band spectrums, which are bands between 1000MHz and 6000MHz.
Col Sanphachai told the Bangkok Post that there is 10MHz of bandwidth on the 800MHz spectrum which the Royal Thai Police (RTP) uses through what it calls LTE trunk radio service for police operations in Bangkok and adjacent provinces.
In the past, the NBTC office allocated this bandwidth to the RTP.
The RTP has invested in its own related transmission system and hired NT to operate the service on such band for years.
However, the RTP has stopped expanding this service, citing a liquidity problem, and failed to pay an overdue service fee of more than 900 million baht to NT.
He said the RTP is in the process of returning the frequency to the regulator and transferring all equipment assets to the Digital Economy and Society Ministry for it to develop a central LTE-trunk system to serve all government agencies.
NBTC should consider granting this 800MHz bandwidth to NT, said Col Sanphachai.
He said the demand for smart solutions at state agencies has increased as digital transformation takes hold.
If NBTC allocates bandwidth to NT for free, the state enterprise can create new services with an improved cost-effective basis for the state, said Col Sanphachai.
He said NT will not participate in the planned auction of multiple spectrum bands by NBTC in May, as the company felt bids were expensive when it obtained a licence on the 700MHz band in the competitive 2020 auction.
NBTC chairman Dr Sarana Boonbaichaiyapruck said the NT president held talks with him on the request for free bandwidth, but said it was too early to make a final decision on the issue.
NT operates mobile phone services through partnership contracts with private operators on three spectrum bands: 850MHZ, 2100MHz, and 2300MHz. The three bands expire in August 2025.
After August, NT is set to have only the 700MHz band left.