Thailand's connection to the Internet began in 1987 via the Australian Research and Education Network using UUCP and SUNIIIDick-Lauder, P. R., and Kurnrnerfeld, R. J. (September 1988). AUUG 88, 9(4), Page 24-29, Australia. Retrieved 24 July 2023. which transformed to full TCP/IP in 1992 to UUNET.Palasri, Sirin; Huter, Steven; Wenzel, Zita (May 2013). University of Oregon. Retrieved 22 July 2023. This marked Thailand as an early participant in bringing the Internet to Asia.

As of 2021, Thailand has made significant progress, with an 85% internet penetration rate data.worldbank.org. Retrieved 22 July 2023. and according to Ookla's insight in November 2022, Thailand ranked the fourth in the world for the fastest fixed broadband internet, with the median download speed of 205.63 Mbps.Fomon, Josh (4 Jan 2023). ookla.com. Retrieved 22 July 2023. This places Thailand right behind Chile, China, and Singapore.

By 2023, the internet penetration rate brought notable changes to Thailand's approach to news and media. The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism reported a shift towards digital media as a key source for political news and discussions. Newer media outlets started to challenge traditional news reporting, altering long-standing journalistic practices. This change is reflected in the growing preference for getting news from online platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

The majority of broadband internet access uses Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) and VDSL. Some areas are covered by cable modems (using Docsis), G.shdsl and fibre to the home (FTTH). Consumer broadband internet bandwidth ranges from 10 Mbit/s to 300 Mbit/s (Up to 1 Gbit/s in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, Phuket). Medium and large businesses use leased lines or Ethernet Internet/MPLS where fiber optic cables link many office buildings in the central business district areas such as Bangkok's Sukhumvit, Silom, and Sathorn areas to the Thailand internet backbone.

A 3G UMTS/HSDPA network was launched in Bangkok and vicinity in December 2009 with speeds up to 7.2 Mbit/s on the 2100 MHz band. In late-2011, Telephone Organization of Thailand released 3G on HSPA+ technology covering all areas in Bangkok with speeds up to 42 Mbit/s. Major mobile network operators in Thailand also have released their 3G services at around the same time on the 850 MHz and 900 MHz bands with the same technology and connection speed. FTTH with speeds up to 1 Gbit/s is available in limited areas in major cities, including Bangkok, Phuket, and Chiang Mai. 5G Cellular services were offered by AIS and True Move starting in 2020.

Thailand saw a rapid growth in the number of broadband users in 2005 with the initiation of unmetered broadband in 2004.Thailand: Rapid Growth in Broadband Use There are 3,399,000 (2012) internet hosts in Thailand, the highest in Southeast Asia.

A 2013 study found that Thais spend an average of 16 hours on the internet per week.

Internet domain names Country code top-level Domain (ccTLD): .th Second Level Domains .ac for academic institutions .co for commercial companies .in for individuals or any others (from 2002) .go for governmental organizations .mi for military organizations .or for registered non-profit organizations .net for officially registered internet service providers

Internet backbones International and domestic bandwidth

Month/Year International Bandwidth (Gbit/s) Domestic Bandwidth (Gbit/s) 09/2021 16,590 9,924 04/2020 12,318 8,666 08/2019 9,377 7,629 05/2018 6,628 5,870 08/2017 4,750 4,358 08/2016 3,144 3,794 08/2015 1,954 2,768 08/2014 1,008 1,833 08/2013 640 1,300 08/2012 407 1,021 08/2010 158 721 12/2009 104 619 12/2008 55 251 12/2007 22 157 12/2006 10 54 12/2005 7 29 12/2004 3 21 12/2003 2 10 12/2002 1 2 12/2001 0.6 1.089 12/2000 0.25 0.58

, Thailand had 12,317,648 Mbit/s international bandwidth and 8,666,005 Mbit/s domestic bandwidth.

Demand for international bandwidth has increased dramatically due to the popularity of social networking services such as YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and increased number of broadband internet subscribers.

International gateways (IP transit) There are 10 international internet gateway operators in Thailand.

Code Name Operator BBConnect-IIG BB Connect Internet Gateway BB Connect CAT-IIG International Internet Gateway CAT Telecom CSL-IIG CS Loxinfo International Internet Gateway CS Loxinfo DTAC-IIG Total Access Communication International Internet Gateway Dtac JASTEL-IIG JasTel International Internet Gateway Jastel Symphony-IIG Symphony International Internet Gateway Symphony Communication AWN-IIG AWN International Internet Gateway Advanced Wireless Network TCCT-IIG TCCT International Internet Gateway TCC Technology TIG-IIG True International Internet Gateway True Internet TOT-IIG TOT International Internet Gateway TOT

True Corporation and Shin Corporation were granted Type II International Internet Gateway and Internet Exchange Service Licenses from the NTC (National Telecommunication Committee) in 2005. CAT Telecom holds the largest share of the market.

Domestic Internet eXchange There are 11 domestic Internet exchange points in Thailand.

Advance Datanetwork Communication National Internet Exchange (ADC-NIX) BB Connect National Internet Exchange by BB Connect (BBConnect-NIX) CS Loxinfo National Internet Exchange (CSL-NIX) Symphony National Internet Exchange (Symphony-NIX) Super Broadband Network (SBN) Internet Exchange (SBN-NIX) TCCT National Internet Exchange by TCC Technology (TCCT-NIX) TOT National Internet Exchange by TOT (TOT-NIX) True Internet Gateway National Internet Exchange (TIG-NIX) JasTel National Internet Exchange (JASTEL-NIX) NECTEC IIR Public Internet Exchange (PIE, Research Only)

Internet eXchange point Thailand Internet Exchange or Thailand IX (Also Known As: CAT-NIX) Symphony Internet Exchange (SYMC-IX) Bangkok Neutral Internet eXchange (BKNIX) BBIX Thailand Before 2003, IIR Public Internet Exchange was the largest internet exchange point in Thailand. As of August 2003, it is mandatory for all ISPs to have a presence in the National Internet Exchange (CAT-NIX) operated by CAT Telecom. CAT-NIX, TIG-NIX, TOT-NIX and TTGN-NIX are primary internet exchanges used by commercial internet service providers. Later, CAT-NIX rebranded itself to Thailand IX and invited international internet players to join its IX. Currently, Thailand IX is the largest internet eXchange point in Thailand with more than 250 Gbit/s bandwidth. Links between different internet exchanges are now set up, reducing domestic bandwidth costs.

The IIR Public Internet Exchange is now maintained by NECTEC and is used only for academic and research purposes. The only commercial internet service provider connected to the IIR Public Internet Exchange is Internet Thailand.

Internet service providers Rights to operate as an internet service provider in Thailand are granted by the NTC (National Telecommunications Council).

Most broadband internet access in Thailand is offered via ADSL technology. Before 2002, broadband internet access was offered at more than 25,000 baht per month for a typical speed of 256 kbit/s. In 2002, TOT sparked a low-cost broadband internet war that caused rapid growth in broadband internet demands and has changed the way all the ISPs operate. With a ground-breaking price for an unlimited 256 kbit/s, TOT gained popularity among online gamers in Thailand. However, TOT was unable to provide services to the majority of people in Bangkok due to the fact that half of the fixed line telephone system was operated by Telecom Asia Co., Ltd (now known as True Corporation) under a concession. At the same time, Asia InfoNet started its own ADSL service with a "free online game airtime" strategy since they also operate Ragnarok Online, the most famous online game at that time. Outside of Bangkok, TT&T teamed up with CAT Telecom to provide unlimited 2 Mbit/s ADSL service after three months of operation.

It is commonly believed that the popularity of online gaming at that time sparked the demand for broadband internet in Thailand.

Most broadband internet users in Thailand complain about the ISPs not being able to provide the speeds they promised. Many internet service providers have high contention ratios on home ADSL packages, sometimes up to 1:50. There was also limited international bandwidth due to CAT Telecom being the sole provider of an international internet gateway, but this has improved since the liberalization of internet gateway operations in 2005. At that time, most ISPs focused on expanding their domestic connections to accommodate online gaming demands. This led to a comeback of premium ADSL packages at a higher price for premium home users and corporate customers. Many users still argue that these packages will still not improve the international bandwidth availability for home users. Internet service providers are usually also criticized for throttling BitTorrent traffic.

Recently, there were dramatic increases in international bandwidth after the NTC authorized more ISPs to set up their own international internet gateways to cope with the growth in demand for contents requiring higher bandwidth.

In early-2009, Jasmine International launched ADSL services under the "3BB" brand in major cities offering speeds up to 3 Mbit/s for 590 baht. This prompted True Internet to expand their services to 8 Mbit/s from 5 Mbit/s and match 3BB prices.

In mid-2009, 3BB offered minimum speed 4 Mbit/s for 590 baht and expanded their services from 8 Mbit/s to 10 Mbit/s 1,490 baht per month, prompting True Internet to temporarily offer free upgrades for current 8 Mbit/s users to 12 Mbit/s. All of Maxnet's customers were also transferred to 3BB as part of the TT&T debt rehabilitation plan proposed by the debt holders. As of October 2009, True offers speeds up to 16 Mbit/s.

TOT and ADC have a local loop unbundling agreement allowing for ADC to provide ADSL services on TOT phone lines. Since most telephone wires in major cities are still on poles and not underground, there is no limit to how many phone lines can enter a building. This has prompted many ISPs to offer DSL services without phone service. A new wire is simply run to the premises requiring the service, bypassing the need for any further local loop unbundling agreements.

Despite the improvement of the internet in Thailand, there are still network issues, mostly concerning network latency. The delay on the network itself proved to be deleterious to competitive online gaming. Players claimed to have network issues which lost them games.

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