Twenty-four new TV channels are getting ready to start digital transmissions in Thailand. All must be on air by the end of March. The growth is creating an estimated 10,000 new jobs across the industy.

“Though many new players in digital terrestrial TV broadcasting have been operating their own satellite-TV channels, they need additional staff to support further TV production and need more marketing and sales support to expand new client bases,” said one broadcast insider, speaking to Bangkok’s Nation newspaper.

Typical recruitment was likely to amount to 300 – 400 people per station. One new broadcaster, news channel Voice TV, said it needed reporters, news anchors, graphic motion designers, co-producers, coordinators, traffic controllers and sales and marketing staff.

But in addition to these new channels, it seems that Thailand’s established broadcasters are also beefing up their staffing levels in order to address and counter the new competition.

The private sector which supplies sub-contracted programme hours into the main TV networks, is also recruiting extra staff, according to the Nation newspaper. Independent production house JSL, for example, currently produces eight variety programmes, talk shows and dramas, totalling 13 hours a week, for three network broadcasters.

After talks with digital TV operators such as Amarin TV, PPTV, Voice TV, MCOT, Nation Multimedia Group, True Corporation, Thai Rath TV and GMM Grammy, JSL Global Media’s CEO Vachara Vaewuthinand said JSL wanted to add 25 – 30 hours per week to its TV production schedule.

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