Thailand’s proposed Game Industry Promotion Act may take at least two more years to pass, while revisions could bring board games and esports within its scope, Thai Game Software Industry Association President Kittipong Prucksa-aroon said.
Kittipong told the Bangkok Post the reported revisions also concern membership of the bill’s oversight and promotion committees. He said a wider definition could bring board games, card games and esports under the law alongside electronic games.
Kittipong described the original committee proposal as a 27-member body, with 20 seats for government and seven for the private sector. The association wants equal representation and would retain two groups: a main committee and a separate committee for the industry fund.
He said the fund could require additional review by the Ministry of Finance. Kittipong estimated enactment could take at least two more years, after another public consultation and reviews by ministries, the Cabinet and Parliament.
The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society said Oct. 30 that the Digital Economy Promotion Agency (DEPA) was continuing work on the bill as part of efforts to support Thai game businesses. The ministry’s statement did not describe the revisions Kittipong outlined.
DEPA’s January 2025 consultation document described registration and oversight rules, committee roles and a promotion fund, along with definitions for the sector. The agency said the framework was intended to improve the industry’s competitiveness and support businesses across the sector. DEPA projected Cabinet consideration by April 2025 and enactment by late that year. The Secretariat of the Prime Minister had listed the bill among measures for possible Cabinet consideration on March 27, 2025.
Digital Economy and Society Minister Chaichanok Chidchob said Oct. 30 that Thailand’s digital content industry was worth more than 50 billion baht and its game industry about 37 billion baht. The ministry did not specify the measurement period for those figures.
