CASBAA Releases “Thailand in View”

The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia today released its “Thailand in View” market report for CASBAA members, providing an up-to-date overview of the pay-TV industry in Thailand, as well as the opportunities and challenges in terms of regulatory and political factors.

Thailand in View provides an in-depth study of the country’s pay-TV environment, plus a regulatory and stakeholder analysis, along with key contacts of Thailand cable TV industry and a draft of the Broadcasting Bill 2007.

According to the report, Thailand’s pay-TV penetration remains relatively low compared with other Asian markets, with just 14.3% of 18.7 million Thai TV households.

Meanwhile, according to CASBAA, there are several issues in the Thai market that need to be addressed before further substantial growth can be achieved, including widespread signal theft and a regulatory environment that permits unlicensed operators in the provinces.

There is also room for significant pay-TV advertising growth. As of now, the Thai government has only given tacit approval for pass-through, non domestic pay-TV advertising, while privately owned pay-TV operators at this time cannot carry any domestic advertising at all, which has suppressed the willingness of industry players to further invest in this sector. The industry hopes that recently-passed broadcasting legislation will unambiguously pave the way for lifting the advertising ban.

“Thailand should have a far more robust pay-TV market given its population, GDP, level of entertainment consumption and the maturity of the advertising industry,” said CASBAA CEO Simon Twiston Davies. “The pay-TV industry is optimistic on progress towards giving Thailand a modern regulatory system.  With the Broadcasting Bill 2007 now passed by the National Legislative Assembly, we look forward to having a licensing regime established for all pay-TV operators and further development of the market in Thailand.”