Bangkok Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Company, operated its television channel business in analogue terrestrial television system under a concession agreement with MCOT Public Company Limited which expired on 25 March 2020. Consequently, the broadcasting of Bangkok Entertainment’s Channel 3 analogue terrestrial television system was terminated pursuant to the expiration of the concession agreement. Currently, the digital terrestrial television system is the only operation remained.
Digital Terrestrial TV “DTTV” - National Business Service category, BECM, a subsidiary company of the Company, won an auction for 3 Licenses to use Allocated Frequencies for National Commercial Digital Television Services, from the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), which were:
- High-Definition Variety Category “3 HD Channel on channel 33”;
- Standard-Definition Variety Category “3 SD Channel on channel 28”; and
- Standard-Definition for Kids and Family Category “3 Family Channel on channel 13”.
The term of the said 3 licenses were 15 years, starting from 25 April 2014 to 24 April 2029.
In this regard, Bangkok Entertainment Co., Ltd. made a settlement agreement with the National Broadcasting Commission “NBC” in the presence of the Central Administration Court on 8 October 2014 that, in order to support national and NBC’s policy to change broadcasting system from Analogue system to Digital system and to be in line with the practice of all other Analogue television operators, NBC authorized and approved BECM and Bangkok Entertainment Co., Ltd. to make a simulcast broadcasting, using Ch 3 analog to broadcast simultaneously with Ch 33 HD digital channel. The said simulcasting was the same way as those of Ch 7 and Ch 9, which was “Real Time Pass Through” with 33 HD digital channel. The NBC meeting on 10 October 2014 approved the amended program schedule of Ch 33 HD, and Ch 33 HD has begun the simulcasting broadcasting of Ch 33 HD with Ch 3 since 10 October, 2014 onward and stop broadcasting CH3 MCOT analog pursuant to the expiration of agreement.
In this regard, on 11 April 2019, the Government Gazette website published the Order of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) No. 4/2562 on the Solution for the Television and Telecommunication Industries which granted operators an opportunity to return the Licenses to use Allocated Frequencies for National Commercial Digital Television Services. Consequently, BECM submitted a request to return channel 28 SD and 13 Family on 10 May 2019, and terminated the operation of channel 28 SD and 13 Family on 30 September 2019.
