Khaosod English reported on Wednesday that Thailand's internet-regulatory body has threatened to punish DTAC, a Norwegian-owned second largest telecommunications company, for revealing that the Thai junta was behind a brief Facebook shutdown last month.
Col. Setthapong Malisuwan, deputy chairman of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC), said it was "inappropriate and unrespectful" that the Norway-based company Telenor, major shareholder of DTAC, was instructed by the NBTC to temporarily block Facebook as part of the junta’s ongoing effort to silence dissidents on social media, as reported by a Norwegian newspaper.
On May 28, Thai Internet users reported of inaccesable Facebook from around 4pm-5pm. Some Thai authorities admitted that they order Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to block Facebook, while some authorities denied giving such order.
Setthapong said the NBTC will be more strict and monitor the stock holdings of DTAC company in a more vigilant manner If it discovers that the ratio of foreigners' stocks in DTAC violate the laws on foreigners' stock holding, the NBC may bar DTAC from the upcoming auction for 4G signal.
Thai law allows foreign equity up to 49 percent in basic telecommunications service firms.
