[Satellite Today Web Exclusive – 6-12-08] Thaicom Public Company Ltd. has one of the most ambitious strategies of any of the satellite operators in Asia. The plan, based on its IPStar satellite, is intended to establish Thaicom as the leader in the satellite broadband market.
    Nongluck Phinainitisart, president of Thaicom, talks about the operator’s plans and how it sees the Asia satellite market developing.
 

Via Satellite: Could you tell us about the demands for satellite capacity in Asia?

Nongluck: Thaicom provides both conventional satellite services,  for mainly broadcasting through the Thaicom satellites, and broadband satellite services via our IPStar satellite. We see the strongest growth in the broadband satellite market, and we believe that it is the main driver of growth for the satellite market as a whole in the future.

Via Satellite: Do you expect there to be pricing pressure in the region and how will this affect Thaicom?

Nongluck: For conventional transponder leasing services we have experienced pricing pressure for some time now in the region, although we believe that it is beginning to level off. We position our products and services based on the overall value proposition, therefore we do not rely on pricing alone. For example, we have over 200 channels on the Thaicom-5 satellite, making it an attractive and powerful video platform in the region.
    As for IPStar, we strongly believe that we have the most cost-effective broadband satellite offering in the market.

Via Satellite: Do you think other FSS operators will look to tap into this market, particularly if they bring more high-powered satellites to market?

Nongluck: We are seeing some satellite broadband services out there in the market using conventional satellites, but such services are ultimately limited due to the higher cost structure and capacity limitations, unlike IPStar. We have now deployed our services in seven countries and are in the process of deploying our services in the remaining seven countries in the Asia-Pacific region.

Via Satellite: Will we see a number of dedicated Ka-band satellites emerge in the region?

Nongluck: Even though the Ka-band service has been introduced and there has been interest in the past several years among satellite operators in the region, at the moment not many Ka-band projects have emerged in the region. This is probably due to the fact that it is sensitive to the atmospheric precipitation and advance technology needs to be implemented on the system in order to cope with this shortcoming. Once it has been overcome, we anticipate that the growth of Ka-band satellite will flourish.

Via Satellite: Have the dynamics for fixed satellite services changed in Asia?

Nongluck: From what we observed, fixed satellite services in recent years tend to be towards more and more TV broadcast services. We can also see that broadband services will widely gain popularity among users in the region.

Via Satellite: How do you assess the prospects for DTH across the region?

Nongluck: We believe that DTH is the most effective way to provide reliable and efficient TV transmission nationwide, and we are active in promoting and developing such platforms for the Indochina region.

Via Satellite: How do you see the satellite landscape developing in Asia?

Nongluck: Our mission is to be the number one provider of broadband satellite services in the region. We are confident there is strong demand for such services throughout the Asia-Pacific region and we will work closely with our partners to successfully deploy such services. In terms of satellite broadband, we obviously see Thaicom as a major player here.