Lao Telecommunications Co., Ltd. (Lao Telecom), the largest telecom operator in Laos, made the official launch of the 3G mobile system last Friday in Vientiane.
During the first phase, Lao Telecom will provide 3G mobile service covering Vientiane and will expand its 3G service to provincial areas next year. Presently, Lao Telecom provides EDGE and GPRS services nationwide.
The company is targeting 3G subscribers to reach 30,000 by the end of this year and expect to reach 100,000 subscribers next year.
Lao Telecom is a joint venture between the government of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (51%) and Shenington Investments (49%). Thailand’s satellite operator Thaicom owns 51 per cent of Shenington. (Nation)
Meanwhile, in Thailand, we have the extreme privilege to enjoy appalling GPRS and (sometimes) Edge services…
Don’t ask me what is the status of 3G projects in Thailand : nobody knows for sure. 
AIS, DTac, True, TOT have projects (and apparently some experiments in Chiang Mai).
But as usual the situation is totally blurred by politics, nationalism and… big money (AKA very private interests).
We are supposed to have the National Telecommunications Commission… but they do nothing, excepted… preventing telecoms companies to do their job.
They are still talking about allocation of frequency, methods for the auctions of the licences, authorizations, technical feasibility… since 3 years !
Beautiful sign of the times here. Know several people in the telecom industry that decided to pack their bags. No contracts signed, no equipment bought – and I’m happy with GPRS speeds, because, how could I tell the difference?
Thais doing what Thais do best: talking a good game. Not so hot at actually doing anything though, and in this case they have been out-performed by Laos.
Oh the irony.
Bedwyr