Thailand’s True Corporation officially announced the full launch of the “One Network” project in 2025, finishing the most critical infrastructure integration work after the 2023 merger of True and DTAC. Post-merger, True holds approximately 54% of the total market share, forming a mobile communications duopoly alongside AIS. This market shift directly impacts the underlying carrier environment for A2P SMS and enterprise communication services.
True and DTAC secured regulatory approval from NBTC for their corporate merger in 2023. Over the following two and a half years, they carried out technical unification of base stations, spectrum and signalling systems under the One Network initiative. The project consumed more than 17 million working hours, combining existing tower assets and frequency resources of both operators to cut redundant infrastructure and enable dynamic spectrum sharing, ultimately delivering upgraded nationwide 4G and 5G coverage. After integration, True’s 5G population coverage reached 94% and 4G coverage hit 99%. Subscribers of True and legacy DTAC can seamlessly share the unified network resources, with major improvements in network speed and peak traffic capacity.
In terms of market structure, the merged True controls more than half of the market and forms a duopoly with AIS. For the A2P SMS industry, the number of mobile operators has further consolidated, making True the second major direct carrier connection provider after AIS. Carriers gain stronger bargaining power and stricter risk enforcement. Compliance rules under the 2025 anti-scam regulations, including Sender‑ID registration and external link validation, will be implemented by these two top operators. Cross-border SMS service providers must interconnect with both AIS and True to achieve nationwide reach across Thai mobile numbers. Carrier onboarding, qualification reviews and channel supervision standards will also become tighter.
