SK Telecom is reportedly considering teaming up with Thai state-owned operator CAT Telecom to jointly bid for a 4G license in Thailand.
The South Korean operator could act as an advisor or even a joint venture partner for a CAT 4G rollout, Bangkok Postreported.
The Thai government plans to auction 25 MHz of 1800-MHz spectrum in August as three planned auctions of 4G-capable spectrum.
SK Telecom is now waiting on Thai regulator NBTC to finalize the plans for this auction and issue an information memorandum before deciding to partner with CAT for the project, the report states.
The two operators have been in talks over a possible partnership deal since last year.
A joint venture could hinge on whether regulator NBTC agrees to tweak the auction rules to allow CAT to allocate some of the spectrum won for sale to other wholesale mobile operators, the report adds. If not, SK Telecom could choose to merely take an advisory role.
CAT Telecom is under pressure to transform its business to make up for a lost revenue stream due to the Thai telecom industry's transition from the concession model – through which private operators paid CAT and TOT a percentage of their revenue - to a more standard licensing regime.