It looks like local football fans will be able to watch all 64 World Cup matches for free. PATIPAT JANTHONG
By Terry Fredrickson
First a blackout threat, then a court ruling allowing a limited set of matches televised on free TV, and now what appears to be free football party sponsored by the government.
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Junta to splurge on footie fest
Council steps in after NBTC loses court case
POST REPORTERS
Big story: A large crowd of reporters and photographers gather at the Supreme Administrative Court for the reading of the verdict on World Cup television broadcast rights. TAWATCHAI KHEMGUMNERD
Football fans are likely to be able to watch all 64 World Cup matches on free-to-air TV after the military junta intervened in a dispute over broadcast rights.
The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) signalled Wednesday it wanted the public to be able to watch the games for free under its policy to "return happiness" to the country.
The junta' s move came after the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) lost its court case to RS Plc, the broadcast rights holder for the World Cup. The telecom regulator was pushing to have all matches broadcast on free-to-air channels.
The NBTC said it would use funds from the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Research Development Fund for the Public Interest (BTFP) to subsidise the cost of broadcasting.
NCPO spokeswoman Sirichan Ngathong said the army-owned TV Channel 5 was also ready to broadcast World Cup matches in compliance with the junta' s policy.
She said the channel would hold a press conference on the matter at the TV station in Sanam Pao Thursday, hours before the tournament's kickoff. Representatives from the Football Association of Thailand, sponsors, RS, Channel 5 and the NCPO would attend the event, she said.
The live broadcast of World Cup matches is in line with the NCPO's policy to "return happiness to the public" , she said.
Earlier stories
Wednesday afternoon update
Artists perform during the opening of the FIFA Congress 2014 in Rio de Janeiro on June 10, 2014, held two days before the opening game of the FIFA World Cup 2014 in Brazil. We should find out today if the match will be broadcast here in Thailand. AFP PHOTO/ FABRICE COFFRINI
World Cup broadcasts go ahead, but free TV limited
There will be no black screen, no local blackout of the World Cup. At the moment, if you want to watch all 64 World Cup 2014, you can, but you'll have to pay – maybe. Here are the details from our online reporters.
The Supreme Administrative Court has just ruled in RS Plc's favour in a case where the telecom regulator tried to force RS to broadcast all 64 World Cup 2014 matches on free TV.
This means that only 22 matches, including the opening and final ones, will be aired on Channel 7 and 8.
The remaining 20 matches to be broadcast on free TV will be at the discretion of RS but they will likely spread across all rounds.
The first three matches to be aired on free TV are: Brazil-Croatia, Mexico-Cameroon and Uruguay-Costa Rica.
Viewers seeking to watch all 64 matches will have three options.
First, they can buy the RS World Cup set-top box, costing 1,590 baht each.
Second, viewers of PSI pay-TV service can watch the matches if they buy the new PSI-O2 HD box.
Third, TrueVisions will carry the World Cup channel by RS, both in standard and high-definition resolution, for its members at no extra charge.
In the latest development, the the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) said it might use the money from the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Reserve Development Fund for the Public Interest to subsidise the broadcast. A briefing will be held later today.
Black screen threat for World Cup
Yesterday, local football fans were cheering that TrueVisions had been added to the list of television outlets broadcasting all World Cup matches.
Today they are wondering if any matches will be aired at all.
With only two days to go before the World Cup kicks off, RS Plc, the broadcast rights holder for the much-awaited global sporting event, on Tuesday threatened to cancel broadcasting all 64 matches on all platforms if it loses a court case with regulators.
The SET-listed company said it would have no choice if it lost the case.
RS is fighting the court case in the Supreme Administrative Court with the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) which wants RS to broadcast all 64 matches on free TV as required by the "must-have rule".
The rule requires seven major sporting events, including the FIFA World Cup, to be broadcast on free TV so the public can enjoy watching them.
The Administrative Court ruled on March 31 that RS did not have to broadcast all 64 games on free TV channels as required by the must-have rule because it had bought the rights in 2005 while the must-have rule took effect in 2012. The NBTC appealed against the ruling.
Pornpan Techrungchaikul, RS chief operating officer, insisted that her company would not do anything that violated its agreement with FIFA. She said the agreement only allowed 22 of the 64 matches to be broadcast live on free TV.
The Supreme Administrative Court is scheduled to make a final ruling later today.
Adapted from a story by our online reporters.
Follow the World Cup in Thai and English. "World Cup English" will get you started. Available in bookstores throughout the country, such as Na In, B2S and Se-ed and here: http://bit.ly/RlaA3Y
Vocabulary
Administrative Court: the court which deals with disputes between the private sector and government agencies - ศาลปกครอง
appeal: to make a request that a court change a decision of a lower court - ยื่นอุทธรณ์
briefing: a meeting in which people receive information or instruction - การสรุปแบบสั้นๆ
broadcast: to send out a programme on television or radio - กระจายเสียง,กระจายข่าว
chief operating officer: the corporate executive who oversees ongoing business operations within the company - หัวหน้าเจ้าหน้าที่ฝ่ายปฏิบัติการ
compliance: the practice of obeying a law, rule, or request - การยอมทำตาม
congress: a big meeting with representatives from different areas -
discretion: the freedom or power to decide what should be done in a particular situation - ความอิสระในการตัดสินใจ
dispute: a serious disagreement - ข้อโต้แย้ง
favour: advantage; benefit - ความได้เปรียบ
festival: an event that is held to celebrate a particular thing or activity - เทศกาล
fund: money provided for something - เงินทุน กองทุน
global: throughout the world - ทั่วโลก
in line with: following a rule or system; also in accordance with and consistent with - สอดคล้องกับ
intervene: to become involved in a situation in order to try to stop or change it - แทรกแซง
junta: a group of military officers that governs a country, usually without having been elected - รัฐบาลทหาร
live: a show or TV program that is happening now, not prerecorded and then shown later -
local: in this country (Thailand) -
matter: a situation or subject which is being dealt with or considered - เรื่อง, ภารกิจ, งาน
National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC): the independent government agency which oversees and regulates the Thai telecoms and broadcasting industry - สำนักงานคณะกรรมการกิจการกระจายเสียง กิจการโทรทัศน์และกิจการโทรคมนาคมแห่งชาติ
option: a choice; something that you can choose in a particular situation - ทางเลือก
order: a situation in which everything is well organized or arranged - ความเป็นระเบียบเรียบร้อย
outlet: a business broadcasting the content of a particular producer - ช่อง
platform: a type of media or way of distributing information , e.g., newspapers, magazines, video, etc. -
policy: a set of plans or action agreed on by a government, political party, business, or other group - นโยบาย
press conference: an official meeting where someone makes a formal statement about a particular issue or event to journalists and answers their questions about it - การแถลงข่าว
regulator: an official who makes certain that the companies who operate a system work effectively and fairly - ผู้มีอำนาจควบคุม
research: a careful study of a subject, especially in order to discover new facts or information about it - การวิจัย
resolution: the power of a computer screen, printer, etc. to give a clear image, depending on the size of the dots that make up the image - ความละเอียดของภาพ, ความคมชัด
right: something that you are legally allowed to do or have - สิทธิ
ruling: a decision by a court of law - คำตัดสิน คำชี้ขาด
scheduled: planned to happen at a particular time or day - ตามตารางเวลา
splurge: to spend a lot of money, especially on something special as a way of making yourself feel good - ใช้เงินอย่างสุรุ่ยสุร่าย
spread: to separate something into parts and divide them between different times or different people - กระจาย
subsidise: to pay part of the costs of something - ให้ความช่วยเหลือด้านการเงิน
take effect: to begin to be used or required - ส่งผล
telecom: a business in the telecommunications industry - โทรคมนาคม)
the public: people in general - ประชาชน, สาธารณชน, มหาชน
threat: saying that you might do something bad or harmful, especially in order to make someone do something - การขู่เข็ญ การคุกคาม ทำให้กลัว
threaten: to say you might or will do something bad or harmful, especially in order to make someone do something - ขู่
violate: to do something that is against the law - ละเมิดกฏหมาย
wonder: to think about something because you want to know more facts or details about it - สงสัย
