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——AIS's enhanced network performance gives solid support to new service provision

"We chose Huawei as our partner because our cooperationi over the past three years has proven mutually beneficial. Huawei's intelligent network is highly reliable and has better cost-effective versus other vendors"
                                                                                    --Mr. Wichian, VP of AIS

"... Only Huawei is able to offer such a detailed and complete solution. Other vendors have never provided such a customized solution ..."
                               --Bongkelee, President of Shin, AIS's major shareholder

Thailand is an economic powerhouse in Southeast Asia while AIS is the largest mobile operator and a listed company with the highest market cap of the country. The operator is committed to improving people's livelihood by providing high-quality communication services. Up to now, AIS has a subscriber base of 28.4 million, from 1.2 million back in 1999, and has been holding more than 50% market share ever since, with about 17 million active prepaid users.

Prepaid business as the killer to build AIS's leadership

AIS's prepaid business had exponential increase at early 2000, but the system then was already saturated, went paralyzed frequently and could not support new business offering. At the same time, DTAC, the runner-up operator of the country, caught up ever closer.

Fully aware of the inability of the old system, AIS expected an extendible and stable prepaid business solution that could be rapidly deployed. Giving full consideration of AIS's needs, Huawei ultimately proposed the TELLIN WIN solution, which is fully compliant with ETSI CAMEL PHASE II and adopted overlay network. The solution could support 500,000 subscribers at first stage and provide prepaid SMS service.

AIS's investment was paid back in 5 months after the successful launch of new system. Meanwhile, it witnessed a significant growth of user base, from 2 million at the end of 2002 to 14 million in Apr.2005, and became a leading service provider in Thailand, with about 70% share of the country's prepaid market.

A constant provider of innovative businesses

In the next few years afterwards, AIS launched a number of customized services, including prepaid, FNS (Familiarity Number Service), CRBT, number portability, mobile VPN, FPH (Free Phone Service), real-time billing etc, and got significant growth of ARPU along with expanged user base.

To illustrate with CRBT, the service was put into commercial use in Dec 2003. After that, number of users increased by 10,000 per day and hit 2.5 million within half a year. AIS created a miracle of business development by recovering its initial investment in less than 5 months.

Win-win strategic partnership

Huawei has rendered strong support to AIS's business aspiration and become a close strategic partner of AIS.

• Responsive to business requirement: Huawei has built an efficient R&D team to make sure that customer needs are promptly responded. In the collaboration with AIS, Huawei has always maintained a high efficiency by offering 3~5 new business features each month.
• Customized services: Huawei involved AIS in requirement analysis, concept, planning and prototype release along the IPD process to ensure a thorough understanding of customer needs and accurate customization. 
•  Intensive communication: Customer needs have always been responded in time by regularly communicating with AIS.
  
  Milestones
  
  
• In October 2000, AIS's previous system was replaced by Huawei's WIN with prepaid service and real-time billing.
• From the end of 2000 to the second quarter of 2004, user base enlarged from less than two million to 12 million by eight expansions.
• From 2001 to 2005, a large variety of value-added services were offered by Huawei, including CBRT, number portability, MVPN etc.