There was much optimism on the future of video and content, with many speakers agreeing that it was indeed Thailand’s time on the world stage. In his welcome address, Sompan Charumilinda, Executive Vice Chairman, True Visions Group, said that in a world where content was resonating and spreading across borders, we’ve now seen the success of Asian, and Thai content, with its heritage of content production second to none.

Commissioner Pirongrong Ramasoota of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), Thailand, expanded on the potential for Thailand, sharing that soft power was now a major national strategy, to address the lack of unified regulations and the lack of a strategic database of its creative and content centre, for effective policy execution. With 11 sectors to focus on, from film and gaming to fashion, although it was too early to predict its success, it was certainly a welcome direction. Commissioner Pirongrong also added that its key role was to regulate as well as promote the audio and video landscape, to make it fit for purpose in the digital age, economically, socially and culturally. With the strength of the Thai industry lying in the diversity of its content, the NBTC was also looking to promote content that reflected diversity and cultural uniqueness, and with the potential to be coproduced with other countries as well.

Content was also a key focus for the streaming platforms. Kanokporn-Jay Prachayaset, Country Manager, WeTV Thailand, Tencent Thailand, shared that while growth has slowed down post pandemic, WeTV remained optimistic, pursuing local originals more aggressively, and taking another step into producing original variety content. And for both iQIYI and WeTV, AI was already in play, increasing efficiencies and cost reductions, with Parnsuk (Poppy) Tongrob, Country Director for Thailand, iQIYI, adding that “iQIYI is AI presented by creative talent.”

Winradit (Win) Kolasastraseni, President, Digital Media, True Digital Group, also said that production was not just for the Thai audience, but for a global audience. However, what you do next after investing in local content was key, with a need to increase the value creation upstream to further downstream in distribution and monetization. “People are now recognizing that Thai can be a Korean option, or even a better version,” said Win.

For Danny Chung, Head of Talent and Content Development, THEBLACKSEA, there were technical hurdles that needed to be overcome such as infrastructure and government assistance, which was essential to the growth of Korean content and culture to the world. While there was no lack of content, there also needed to be the exchange of opportunity. “Neighbours within Asia have their own strengths and weaknesses, we can help each other, and give our pool of talent global visibility and the platform to access the rest of the world,” said Chung.

Click here to continue