Thailand News Today | FIFA threatens to pull plug on World Cup broadcast rights in Thailand
Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob ordered Thai Airways International to
solve delays in luggage claims for inbound passengers at Suvarnabhumi airport in
30 days.
The minister inspected services at the main airport of the country and found that
travelers’ congestion in their immigration process was obviously relieved because
it took 15 minutes for each of the travelers to have their passports checked.
However, the minister saw that inbound air passengers had to wait for a long while
to claim their luggage. Suvarnabhumi airport has two service providers for luggage
handling – Thai Airways International (THAI) and Bangkok Flight Services (BFS).
The delay happened mostly with THAI because it downsized its organization and
workforce.
Minister Saksayam told the THAI management to work out its action plan to solve
the problem in 30 days. He expected the plan next week.
Unless THAI could solve the problem, the Transport Ministry would order
Airports of Thailand that operated Suvarnabhumi airport to increase its luggage
handling contractors, Mr. Saksayam said
FIFA threatens to pull the plug on World Cup broadcast rights in Thailand
FIFA has threatened to suspend broadcast rights for World Cup 2022 football
matches in Thailand after it was discovered that audiences in two neighboring
countries can view the Thai transmissions, even though the broadcast rights for
their countries have not been purchased.
According to the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT), FIFA has demanded that
Thailand meets the encryption standards required, otherwise, it may pull the plug.
After receiving the notification from FIFA, the SAT called an urgent meeting with
the parties concerned, among them the National Broadcasting and
Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) and digital TV operators, to consider
FIFA’s demand.
An SAT official said that the meeting concluded that they could not meet FIFA’s
encryption standard, because the transmission technology employed by the service
providers is not advanced enough and the customers’ set-top boxes are not
compatible with the required technology.
The meeting did agree, however, that they would propose to FIFA a change to the
transmission code which, they believe, would prevent audiences in other countries
gaining access to broadcasts in Thailand.
Regarding the reallocation of broadcast rights for the 64 football matches,
following complaints of unfair allocation in favour of True Corporation by digital
TV operators, an SAT official said that True Corp has decided to relinquish the
rights to 16 of the 32 matches for redistribution among digital TV operators.
It was agreed that all of them will be allocated equal rights to air three matches
each, instead of just two.
True was originally allocated the rights to air 32 matches because it contributed
about 300 million baht to the fund to buy the rights from FIFA, on top of the 600
million baht contributed by NBTC, but the amount was still short of the 1.4 billion
baht required.
More Thai companies subsequently made contributions, making it possible for the
Thai audience to watch all 64 matches.
Thai Air Force awaits US Congress approval to buy advanced F35 fighter jets
The Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) is determined to procure two F35 fighter jets
from the United States, despite resistance from opposition parties, and is now
awaiting a response from the US Congress as to whether it will approve their sale
to Thailand, according to RTAF Commander-in-Chief ACM Alongkorn Vannarot.
He admitted that he is not sure whether Congress will approve Thailand’s
acquisition, as one of its close allies, because the plane’s technology is regarded as
top secret, adding that the RTAF has no Plan B if the US response is negative.
The F35 is a multi-role fighter with stealth technology. More than a fighter jet, it
has the ability to collect, analyse and share data and is a powerful force multiplier
that enhances all airborne, surface and ground-based assets in the battlespace.
He also said that the RTAF is reviewing some programs, such as Phase 7 of the air
defence system and the surface-to-air radio system.
The air force chief maintains that the RTAF’s procurement plan was carefully
thought out, in full realisation of the budget constraints, which must be managed
efficiently, and can address any questions from the public or political parties.
Officials expand northeast Thailand’s Naga tourism with new travel route
Officials are expanding northeast Thailand’s Naga tourism with an exciting new
travel route. The route stops at places in the region where people worship the
mythical serpent.
The route is organised by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT)’s Udon Thani
office. Tourists on the route visit places of worship in the Udon Thani, Nong Khai,
and Bueng Kan provinces.
The new campaign is expected to generate about 120 million baht from December
until February.
On the route, tourists will visit temples in Udon Thani and Nong Khai provinces.
In Bueng Kan, they will visit a temple, as well as the Naga Cave and Don Pho
Island. Don Pho Island is an island on a swamp, which has a shrine where people
worship Nagas.
At the Naga Cave, there is a rock with bumps that look like snake scales. The rock
has drawn tourism to Bueng Kan. Earlier this year, 90% of hotels in the Bueng
Khong Long district were occupied at one point. The Naga Cave is inside the Phu
Langka National Park.
The Naga is a mythical serpent that Northeastern Thais believe brings rain to their
crops. The Northeastern Thai legend says that the water angel ordered Nagas to
play in a lake, so water would spill onto people’s crops as rain.
The legend of Naga holds deep meaning in Northeastern Thai legends, and legends
from other Southeast and South Asian cultures.
Earlier this month, the Cabinet announced that the Naga will be used as a symbol
of Thai culture to promote the kingdom’s creative economy.
Reckless Lamborghini driver makes dangerous move & gets hit by pickup
A reckless Lamborghini driver got hit by a pickup in the middle of the road in the
central province of Sukhothai after making a dangerous right turn by cutting off
other cars in the queue. The driver of the luxury vehicle was angry at the pickup
driver but the video of the incident clearly shows the fault lies with the Lambo
man.
The Lamborghini was in a convoy with a group of other luxury cars on a planned
road trip to Sukhothai. The cars obviously drew a lot of attention from locals in the
province. Many people stopped and took pictures and recorded videos of the car.
Ironically, their videos turned out to provide evidence of the incident.
Two Thai Facebook users, posted videos that captured the incident between the
pickup and what looks like a red Lamborghini Huracan model, which is worth
between 20 million baht and 50 million baht. The two social media users revealed
that the incident happened at the Sukhothai Airport Intersection last night,
November 24, at about 6 pm.
The videos showed that the red Lamborghini wanted to make a right turn but he
was not in the queue. He tried to jump the queue and cut in front of a waiting car,
which could clearly see the oncoming pickup. The pickup could not stop in time
and smashed into Lamborghini sending it spinning across the road.
The videos went viral on Thai social media with most netizens blaming the
Lamborghini driver for his reckless driving. Many netizens were worried that the
pickup would not get justice because the Lamborghini driver is probably rich and
powerful.
One man commented on the video that the pickup driver was his aunt. The man
revealed that the Lamborghini driver was angry at his aunt and said the accident
was his aunt’s fault. However, social media videos clearly show who was at fault,
so the driver had to accept it. The man also added that everyone was safe.
Officers from Sawan Kalok Police Station posted accident pictures and details on
its official Facebook page. Netizens were angry at the post because it said…
“Pickup crashes into a luxury car” without an explanation of why the luxury car
was hit.
A spokesperson from Sawan Kalok Police Station updated its Facebook page last
night, saying that the two drivers have agreed on compensation. The Lamborghini
driver is reportedly paying compensation and maintenance costs to the pickup
driver.
No charges were issued against the Lamborghini driver.
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