'Single gateway' only for regulatory oversight: Prajin

“Actually, it is not to have only one gateway,” he said. “The idea [of this] is how to utilise the nation’s resources, Internet and telecoms. For example, is it possible to together use the international Internet gateways order to reduce costs. However, it is a study. For inbound Internet connections, is it possible to have a neutral Internet exchange and set up a joint-company to operate this while the government oversees and protects people, not violates their basic rights? 

“Moreover, we need to study whether we need to have a new law to support this or not, or whether we can apply the Computer Crime Act or not.”

Deputy Premier ACM Prajin Juntong said the idea of a single gateway was not to control information, but more like building a small road to become a big road. “People who are against the project misunderstand it,” he said. 

The government ordered the ICT Ministry to study a single gateway and was told that the ministry has appointed working panels to do this, with an ICT Ministry committee and CAT Telecom and TOT committee, Prajin said. 

The CAT Telecom and TOT committee suggested it is possible to set up a single gateway since there is so much traffic sent via international Internet gateways. The huge traffic brings huge investment costs. 

People against the move may misunderstand the definition of a single gateway, he said. “They assume that a single gateway means merging international Internet gateways and controlling them. However, everyone should study exactly what the ICT Ministry plans to do. If [they] oppose this without understanding, they won’t be able to get together on co-development. 

“We need to study how the model should be and then hear all opinions, in order to adjust the model for best operation. For now, we have not reached the stage of getting a [preferred] model,” Prajin said.

He said it was impossible that the single gateway for the Internet might go down and cause the country’s Internet connections to collapse. 

“They don’t understand the single gateway. It doesn’t mean it will only be a ‘single’ [link] or a bottleneck. Rather, a single gateway just means integration of ‘ways’ that regulate [Net traffic] by an integrated regulatory body.” 

Colonel Sanpachai Huvanandana, acting chief executive officer of CAT Telecom, said the proposed single gateway was a concept for a ‘consolidated gateway’ between TOT and CAT Telecom. TOT and CAT Telecom plan to combine their assets into one and set up a combined organisation, which would take time.

For national security, the government needs to have a solid organisation to oversee things – not CAT Telecom and TOT. All this must be done under the law. The National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission’s role was to oversee Internet traffic, he said.