The Eastern Economic Corridor (EECO), a special economic zone of three provinces in eastern Thailand, has partnered with state-owned National Telecommunications (NT) to launch the country’s first 5G pilot. Under the plan, the district of Ban Chang, Rayong, will become Thailand’s first progressive smart city, according to a statement.
The two companies said infrastructure around the Ban Chang Subdistrict Municipality is being improved to prepare the area for various communications systems, including frequency technologies that support the industrial development of 5G.
EECO and NT plan to work with other business operators via an infrastructure-sharing concept, which will reduce investment duplication between the public and private sectors and capitalize on government assets.
Recently, the two entities have teamed up to install a device to check their 5G Smart Pole system, which has been tested to capture over 10 real-time functions. Through 5G network signals, the Smart Poles can transfer and sync data with the government to provide real-time access to information and assistance.
A cloud network software provider was also selected to focus on network transformation and networking for communication service providers. Additionally, NT has collaborated with other major network players.
The serial entrepreneur who launched one of the network companies will serve as the chief executive of the company and will be spearheading this initiative. She also announced that she has stepped down from her role as a venture partner at Gobi Partners, but will continue as an advisor in the VC firm.
According to an earlier OpenGov Asia article, Thailand Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (MDES), Digital Economy Promotion Agency (depa) and a Chinese multinational technology company announced the launch of the Thailand 5G Ecosystem Innovation Center (5G EIC) in Bangkok, the aim is to accelerate 5G innovation through ecosystem collaboration and boost the digital economy.
The centre will serve as a sandbox for the development of digital innovations for 5G applications and services across various industries in Thailand. These innovations will create new business opportunities for SMEs, start-ups and educational institutions, enabling Thailand to become a digital hub of the ASEAN region.
On behalf of the Prime Minister, the Minister of Digital Economy and Society delivered the keynote speech themed “Incubating 5G Ecosystem to Support the Digital Transformation of Thailand 4.0” at the opening ceremony.
He noted that Thailand is taking a crucial step toward moving into a new socio-economic era. It is among the first countries in ASEAN to be on track to adopt 5G technology, which not only offers innovative services and seamless experiences but is also reshaping all industries toward digitalization.
The depa President and CEO stated that the agency aims to drive Thailand towards the digital economy. Thailand 5G EIC will bring together an international alliance network to drive Thailand digital innovations in the long run.
Therefore, the collaboration between depa and global leading companies like the Chinese tech firm in establishing 5G EIC will greatly enrich the ecosystem.
At the ceremony, the Chinese tech giant revealed its THB475 million plan for 5G EIC, which will include its leading 5G equipment and solutions, and worldwide partners to Thailand. The tech company vowed to incubate over 100 local SMEs and start-ups annually to adopt 5G solutions for different vertical industries in three years.
The 5G EIC will be firstly launched in Thailand among ASEAN countries, it marks an important milestone for the 5G development in the country and even in the region, the CEO of the firm’s Thailand branch noted. He added that it is a great honour to be one of the initiators and the main partner of the visionary project.
The firm is fully committed to nurturing the 5G ecosystem and support the Thailand 4.0 initiative with the global leading experiences and resources.