BANGKOK: Thailand's telecom regulator has approved the merger of top Thai mobile operator AIS and a local rival, despite concerns about the potential for anti-competitive practices.
AIS, whose parent company Intouch Holdings was founded by billionaire and ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's family, declared its plans to merge with 3BB in July last year.
The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) approved the deal late Friday, but listed conditions such as price capping and quality controls.
"The merger is a delicate matter and affects the general public, we have studied it comprehensively," the NBTC said in a statement.
"The majority of NBTC has expressed points of concern for this merger... it needs to follow the regulations of the price strictly," it added.
The decision will allow AIS to purchase 100 percent of 3BB – also known as Triple T Broadband – in a 32.4 billion baht (US$899 million) deal, according to media reports.
It comes a year after a merger between mobile units DTAC and True, owned respectively by Norwegian giant Telenor's Thai arm and local conglomerate Charoen Pokphand.
Following the AIS-3BB deal, just two companies will account for over 80 percent of the broadband market, with state-owned National Telecom owning the remaining 20 percent
Opponents of the agreement have warned allowing it to go ahead will impact customers, with the lack of competition potentially leading to higher prices.
"If NBTC doesn't exercise its power righteously, who could the consumers rely on?" former NBTC commissioner Supinya Klangnarong told reporters.
"The last government approved the True-DTAC deal, this government approved the AIS deal."
Thailand's powerful business monopolies were a key talking point during the election earlier this year, with reformist parties pledging to dismantle their stranglehold on the market.
Though the progressive Move Forward Party won the vote, it was ultimately sidelined, with the opposition Pheu Thai party – also linked to Thaksin – now leading the coalition government.
Gulf Energy now owns the largest share of Intouch Holdings, following a series of sales.--AFP