Phuket: NBTC joins government sector and mobile network to test mobile alert system in Phuket city center. AIS shows progress with Cell Broadcast on LIVE Network in Phuket city center, connecting with the central government command center, providing peace of mind to Thai people nationwide. Mr. Trirat Viriyasirikul, Deputy Secretary-General and Acting Secretary-General of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC Secretary-General), said that in the past, the NBTC office has discussed with the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, and all telecommunications operators to develop an emergency warning system via mobile phone networks (Cell Broadcast) to facilitate the public. It is expected that in the second quarter of 2025, the Cell Broadcast system will be ready for use in some areas of the country. The latest test was in Phuket Province to test the warning system. It is considered a virtual test that will confirm the readiness of mobile phone operators in a tangible way. According to Thai News Agency, the NBTC has provided budget support to three mobile operators, AWN, TUC, and NT, with the Broadcasting, Television and Telecommunications Research and Development Fund for Public Interest (NBTC) to develop the Cell Broadcast system. The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation will be the main agency to determine the content and area for sending messages, managing the messages to be communicated or Cell Broadcast Entity (CBE), while the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society will be the agency that operates the Cloud Server system and the connection between CBE and Cell Broadcast Center (CBC), which is supervised by the network service provider, responsible for delivering the content of the warning message to mobile phones in the disaster or emergency area. Mr. Waruntep Watcharaporn, Head of Business Relations at AIS, stated that AIS has worked with the government sector to select the technology appropriate for the country's warning system according to international standards, namely Cell Broadcast Service technology. This system is designed for communicating messages directly to people's mobile phones in specific areas and is suitable for emergency notifications because it can send messages to all mobile phones that support 4G or higher in the coverage area of the base station simultaneously. The message display format is displayed on the mobile phone screen as a Pop UP Notification in Near Real Time Triggering to enable immediate awareness of various situations. After continuous development, AIS and all service providers recently experimented with Cell Broadcast technology in Phuket Province, achieving results as targeted and are ready to expand the connection with the government's central command center for warning citizens with full efficiency, extending coverage to every area throughout the country as continuously as possible, from the current coverage of over 95% of the population, especially in remote areas. 'The visit t o Phuket is an experiment to test the feasibility of a virtual warning system on the LIVE Network or a Proof of Concept for a specific area in case of emergencies, disasters, and natural disasters that will be ready to connect to the central command center of the government. All of this went very well, which will create confidence in living safely for the people and tourists,' said Mr. Warunthep.
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