A revolving fund committee under the Ministry of Finance, and also the Budget Bureau, have taken issue with a clause in the draft of the Game Industry Act that requires the establishment of a specific fund to promote the game industry.
According to Wisit Wisitsora-at, permanent digital economy and society (DES) secretary, the committee said existing funds, such as the Digital Fund of the DES Ministry, could be used for the purpose of promoting the game industry.
The ministry shared these opinions for the consideration of the Digital Economy Promotion Agency (depa) which drafted the law.
Mr Wisit said the process of developing the law could be smoother if depa agreed to remove the clause regarding this specific fund.
The law aims to solve various problems in the game industry and support the industry's development through the promotion fund.
The fund has set a target to receive 500 million baht a year from the specific fund and another 500 million baht a year from the Revenue Department.
The specific fund would be operated by the Game Promotion Institute, which would be established in the future by depa.
According to the ministry, the law is aimed at covering all dimensions of the digital game business and services.
Games, especially online games, have generated concern among public and related agencies over the possibility that their content may fall into the category of gambling activities.
Therefore, games should be defined and supervised with clear regulations and a registration system that balances monitoring and promoting the game ecosystem.
The games category is more expansive than physical activities carried out at internet cafes, motion pictures or online platforms on both the iOS and Android operating platforms.
The law is to deal with the sophisticated development of the game sector which is currently worth 30-40 billion baht as well as to promote Thailand as a gaming hub in the Southeast Asian region.
Depa president Nuttapon Nimmanphatcharin said the agency expects the value of the Thailand's game industry to reach 100 billion baht within the next 10 years.
However, game exports are currently worth 800 million baht a year, indicating it is another industry that is experiencing a deficit, given that game imports exceed game exports.