AAT's lobby is being led by AAT president, Parames Rachjaibun, who said the policy flew in the face of agreements signed under the World Trade Organisation and the ASEAN Free Trade Area.
said Parames.
Thailand has invested heavily in its production facilities over the years in a bid to become the leading production house in Asia-Pacific. The country achieved considerable success, producing more than 4,000 TV commercials last year. Of the 4,000 productions in 2001, more than 25 per cent were made by foreign companies, earning five billion baht (US$115 million).
But the cost effectiveness of producing regional and global TVCs in Thailand is reduced greatly if these commercials cannot be screened in Malaysia, and a fresh campaign has to be produced specifically for the Malaysian market, by Malaysian nationals. This is likely to force clients to produce campaigns in Malaysia.
"We are proud of our production capacity and we want to promote Thailand as a hub, but we can't with these problems,
he said. "Malaysians used to come here too, but not any more as they are forced to use Malaysian resources."
The private sector has rallied behind AAT's call. Euro RSCG general manager, Paisit Vatjanapagorn, said: "Regional clients want to shoot one version for economic reasons and show it everywhere. But because of this, clients are being forced to go to Malaysia where they may not feel it is the best choice for quality or price. I don't mind if we are beaten on quality. If Malaysia is an honest friend to ASEAN, it should have an exception for ASEAN members."
