The Bangkok Post Facebook page will broadcast tonight's spectacular New Year fireworks display live from CentralWorld Bangkok.
The live broadcast will start at 11.40pm. Before counting down to midnight and the fireworks display, there will be performances by various music artists.
Viewers can get a unique view of the fireworks shortly afterwards, recorded in the latest 360-degree Digital Virtual Reality using Huawei 5G network technology and posted on the Bangkok Post and Post Today websites.
It will be the first time a New Year fireworks countdown in Thailand is recorded in VR with 5G technology, supported by Huawei Technologies.
It will also be shown at CentralWorld, Ratchaprasong, from Jan 5-18.
The unique recording can be replayed 1,000 times.
Around the world, the New Year celebrations start in Auckland, New Zealand, with Sydney, Tokyo, Seoul, Beijing, and Bangkok all part of a timeline that nears its end with the famous annual Times Square celebration in New York 12 hours later.
While people may not be able to venture out to celebrate together this year, we, along with the organisers, hope this grand event can be the "The Times Square of Southeast Asia", raise the mood of a region that has been suffering under the shadow of Covid-19 for many months now and provide a lively start to the New Year.
With vaccinations now beginning throughout the world, hopes are high that 2021 will be a bookmark in history's pages that shows the point at which the global community saw light at the end of the tunnel, in what was one of the most challenging years for many -- if not, most -- of us.
Central Pattana Plc, operator of CentralWorld, is joining with partners - the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Mastercard, Plan B Media Plc, LINE Company (Thailand), and ONE 31 Co - to organise the world-class new normal New Year countdownt.
Besides the Bangkok Post, the event will also be broadcast by Post Today, ONE 31, LINE TV, Workpoint Entertainment, and the CentralWorld Facebook pages.
Nattakit Tangpoonsinthana, executive vice president of Marketing for Central Pattana Plc, said it is the first time that landmarks for New Year countdowns worldwide have encouraged at-home celebrations.
"CentralWorld, aka Times Square of Asia and Thailand's world-renowned entertainment countdown landmark for more than 20 years, immediately takes responsibility, for society and the world, in coping with Covid-19, in announcing that the countdown will be by Live broadcast only, for the sake of the nation, to get through this situation, stronger together," said Dr Nattakit.
The highlight of the countdown is the fireworks show, with the theme "A Symbol of Hope". It will last a full five minutes, providing meaningful positivity to people around the world, he said.
The display will use digital synchronization to combine audio and visual graphic art and be shown on panOramix, the world’s longest digital screen, solidifying CentralWorld’s status as the greatest countdown landmark of all time, he said.