HEADLINES: Panasonic lifts Thai handset budget by 10 times

Japanese electronic company Panasonic has increased its ad budget by 10 times to US$2 million in a bid to secure a larger slice of Thailand's mobile handset market. It has also enlisted Taiwanese talent Jay Chou as the celebrity endorser. The Thai market is dominated by Nokia, Motorola and Siemens, with a market share of 43, 20 and 13 per cent respectively.