Google Thailand opens for business

Aims to increase online advertising spending and increase Thai content, opens new chapter for Thailand's internet industry.

Photo above of Google's founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin who founded the company while they were still computer science graduate students at Stanford University.

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MEDIA: Google Thailand to push local content, web services by Suchit Leesa-nguansuk

Internet search engine Google has officially opened its representative office in Thailand in a drive to boost local content of its web services and the visibility of its business online.

The strategy is aimed at increasing the country's online advertising spending. Thailand's online ad spending accounts for less than 1% of an annual 90 billion baht in total ad spending.

The establishment of Google Thailand, the third office in the region after Malaysia and Singapore, offers concrete evidence of a long-term investment commitment and opens a new chapter for the local internet industry.

"Thailand has only 25 million internet users out of a population of 70 million, and still has room for growth driven by 3G service," said Ariya Banomyong, the newly appointed country manager of Google Thailand.

Online ads constitute 50% of total ad spending in the United Kingdom and 30% in the United States.

Mr Ariya said the Thai operating unit would handle sales, marketing and supporting partners and customers in a closer relationship than with the Singapore office previously.

We aim to increase more local content here. A statistic showed that Thai content accounts for only 1% of global online information," he said

Although eight out of 10 Thais search online before a purchase, only 10% of Thai firms have a website.

Google in June launched a free website called Thai Business, Go Online. More than 25,000 companies have participated in the programme so far.

"We aim to have 50,000 companies join the programme within 12 months," Mr Ariya said.

"The more local content and business listed online, the more accurate and up-to-date the search engine," he said, adding that this could provide useful information to users and measurable tools for advertisers. 

Search engine advertising is expected to provide the company's core revenue.

Mr Ariya, the former chief commercial officer of True Corporation, said he will apply his experience from the mobile business, a dynamic and highly competitive market, in managing Google.

Julian Persaud, the managing director for Google in Southeast Asia, said in a video conference from Bangkok yesterday that Google Inc may buy technology firms to expand in Southeast Asia, following internet operators such as Tencent Holdings Ltd and LivingSocial in acquiring companies to add services and users in the region. He declined to provide further details.

(Source: Bangkok Post, MEDIA, Google Thailand to push local content, web services, 25/08/2011, Suchit Leesa-nguansuk, link) 

Internet Industry Vocabulary

Google - the world's number one internet search company, "generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program. The company was founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin ... while the two were attending Stanford University as PhD candidates. It was first incorporated as a privately held company on September 4, 1998, and its initial public offering followed on August 19, 2004" (See Wikipedia)

Sergey Brin - "born August 21, 1973 ... a Russian-born American computer scientist and internet entrepreneur who, with Larry Page, co-founded Google, one of the largest internet companies. As of 2011, his personal wealth is estimated to be $19.8 billion" (See Wikipedia)

Larry Page - "born March 26, 1973 is an American computer scientist and internet entrepreneur who, with Sergey Brin, is best known as the co-founder of Google. As of April 4, 2011, he is also the Chief Executive Officer of Google, as announced on January 20, 2011. As of 2011, his personal wealth is estimated to be $19.8 billion" (See Wikipedia)

search - to look somewhere carefully in order to find something ค้นหา
search engine - a web page and service used search for information on the internet with results presented in a list of web pages, images, information and other types of files (See Wikipedia)

search engine advertising - the use of search engines to advertise products and services (See Wikipedia on search advertising and search engine marketing)
online advertising - advertising shown on web pages and in online video (See Wikipedia)

local - in this country (here: Thailand)  
content - stories and articles in a newspaper or magazine plus photos, graphics and video เนื้อหา,สาระ
local content - stories, articles, photos, graphics and video made in Thailand with the Thai language for Thai people
push local content - try to get people interested in local content; try to sell local content to local people, get them to read and view it

representative office -  an office that "represents" the company in Thailand (that does business for the company in Thailand)

drive - a planned effort to achieve something การผลักดัน,ความพยายาม
boost - to increase; to strengthen เพิ่ม; ทำให้มีกำลังมากขึ้น
drive to boost local content - a planned effort to increase and strengthen local content

visibility - how clearly objects can be seen ทัศนวิสัย
online - on the internet
visibility of its business online - make the internet part of the business easier to see (so more people know about it)

strategy - a plan to achieve a goal over a longer period of time ('strategy' gives the big picture, 'tactics' the details)
annual - for the year or happening every year ประจำปี

establishment of Google Thailand - the creation of Google Thailand

concrete - based on facts, not on ideas or guesses
evidence - information that shows and proves something to be true หลักฐาน
concrete evidence - facts that clearly show that something is true

investment - taking your money and putting it into projects to make a profit or earn interest (buying stock shares, bonds, real estate)
commitment - a promise to continue buying or doing something in the future (for example, buying a brand of product) การใ้ห้คำมั่น
long-term investment commitment - a promise to continue investing in the country for a long time

opens a new chapter - starts a new era (period of time) different from the past
opens a new chapter for the local internet industry - creates a new era or period for the internet industry in the country
chapter - a section of a book บท (here: meaning a new era or period of time different from the past)

population - the group of people who live in one country, area or place กลุ่มที่อาศัยอยู่ในบริเวณหนึ่ง

still has room for growth - a lot of future growth is still possible; still has growth potential

3G - "the latest evolution in phone technology, following on from 1G analogue and 2G digital mobile phones. 3G offers high-speed data transfer rates which allows mobile broadband [internet] and two-way video calling" (See Wikipedia and Google Definitions)

country manager - the person who manages the business for a whole country
newly appointed country manager - a country manager who has just been given the job

X constitutes Y% of Z - X is Y% of Z 

the Thai operating unit - the smaller part of the company operating in Thailand 

aim - the thing you hope to achieve by doing something เป้าหมาย

global - all over the world, including the whole world ทั่วโลก ทั้งโลก
global online information - all the information on the internet

a purchase (noun) - the act of buying something
launched - started, began เริ่ม เริ่มต้นดำเนินการ

accurate - correct, exact and without any mistakes ถูกต้อง, แม่นยำ
provide - to give someone something that they want or needs

expected - believe will happen คาดว่า (จะเกิดขึ้น)

core - the heart; the most important and central part ส่วนสำคัญ แก่น สิ่งที่สำคัญที่สุด
revenue - income from taxes or business activities รายได้
core revenue - the most important and central revenue of the business

apply - to make use of something นำมาใช้
apply experience - use experience from one activity in another activity

dynamic - moving and changing all the time
competitive - involving competition; many people trying to get some limited thing (customers, victory, etc) มีการแข่งขัน

expand - to become larger ขายตัวออกไป
operators - businesses doing a certain business