Big story: A large crowd of reporters and photographers gather at the Supreme Administrative Court for the reading of the verdict on World Cup television broadcast rights. TAWATCHAI KHEMGUMNERD
Football fans are likely to be able to watch all 64 World Cup matches on free-to-air TV after the military junta intervened in a dispute over broadcast rights.
The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) signalled Wednesday it wanted the public to be able to watch the games for free under its policy to "return happiness" to the country.
The junta' s move came after the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) lost its court case to RS Plc, the broadcast rights holder for the World Cup. The telecom regulator was pushing to have all matches broadcast on free-to-air channels.
The NBTC said it would use funds from the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Research Development Fund for the Public Interest (BTFP) to subsidise the cost of broadcasting.
NCPO spokeswoman Sirichan Ngathong said the army-owned TV Channel 5 was also ready to broadcast World Cup matches in compliance with the junta' s policy.
She said the channel would hold a press conference on the matter at the TV station in Sanam Pao Thursday, hours before the tournament's kickoff. Representatives from the Football Association of Thailand, sponsors, RS, Channel 5 and the NCPO would attend the event, she said.
The live broadcast of World Cup matches is in line with the NCPO's policy to "return happiness to the public" , she said.