New minister tries to break log jam in the Thai telecom sector

Concession conversion. As an interim measure aimed at diffusing tensions on the prickly issue of concession conversion, Minister Surapong has suggested that private sector telecom operators stop making revenue share payments to TOT Corporation Public Co Ltd (TOT) and the Communications Authority of Thailand (CAT). Instead, he is advocating that the revenue share payments, as well as the "ownership" of the concessions themselves, be transferred to the Ministry of Finance (MOF) until such time that that the ICT Ministry and MOF can come up with a solution on concession conversion.