Telecom operators and regulators on Friday conducted a successful test of a full-scale virtual cell broadcast entity (CBE) mobile emergency alert system in Bangkok.
Participating operators Advanced Info Service (AIS), True Corp and state-owned National Telecom were joined by staff from the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).
The test confirmed that alerts can be delivered to both Android and iOS smartphones, following Apple’s recent rollout of cell broadcast support in its iOS 18 for iPhone users in Thailand.
The cell broadcast service requires a CBE system and cell broadcast centres (CBCs) in order to work.
Ever since the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami, successive governments in Thailand have promised to launch a cell broadcast emergency alert system. The March 28 earthquake that caused significant damage in Bangkok led to renewed calls for the system and questions about why it is still not in place.
The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) is responsible for establishing the CBE system as a central command post for warnings. It is also responsible for creating, managing and approving the content of the alerts and defining the areas to be notified.
The department is still developing the CBE system.
Private telecom operators serve as CBCs, tasked with broadcasting DDPM-approved messages through designated cell towers within the specified alert zones.
All three mobile operators have installed the CBC system, said Dr Sarana Boonbaichaiyapruck, the NBTC chairman.
A cell broadcast service permits a number of unacknowledged general messages to be broadcast to all recipients within a defined region.
The system differs from SMS because it doesn’t require specified phone numbers, allowing for rapid and efficient communication of emergency information covering the entire affected area. People also do not need to download any apps.
The cell broadcast service technology is supported by Android smartphones running version 12 or higher, and iPhones running iOS 18.
The service is not supported by 2G and 3G devices, as well as iPhone 10 smartphones or earlier models that cannot be updated to iOS 18. As a result, SMS alerts still need to be sent to address this limitation.
AIS has roughly 1.6 million users of 2G and 3G services, while True has 900,000 such users, according to the NBTC.
Three types of alerts
Trairat Viriyasirikul, acting secretary-general of the NBTC, said warning messages will be grouped into three categories: national alerts, emergency alerts and amber alerts.
For earthquakes, warning messages will be sent by the Meteorological Department and the DDPM, without going through the NBTC.
For other types of disasters, such as floods or storms, the DDPM is expected to coordinate with the NBTC to directly notify the three telecom operators to send warning messages to the public.
Waroonthep Watcharaporn, head of business relations at AIS, said the test marks a significant step forward in enhancing Thailand’s national emergency alert readiness, enabling timely communication of critical information to the public.
Chakkrit Urairat, chief corporate affairs officer at True, said the earthquakes in large swathes of Thailand on March 28 and in Krabi on April 14 highlight the urgent need for an effective warning system here.
The NBTC said recently that it is also looking at ways to integrate an emergency warning system with a digital TV network.
The regulator is studying the feasibility of designating a new digital TV Channel 1 specifically for disaster warnings and updates.