The State of Thai Advertising Industry after World War II

Abstract

        The objective of the research paper was to study the states of Thai advertising industry after the World War II in terms of type of advertising agencies, work structure, positions and working process.  This study was a qualitative research using document analysis and in-depth interviews methods in collecting the data.  The research results were summarized in 3 periods: the era before Thai television broadcasted (1945 - 1955), the first phase after Thai television media broadcasted (1955 - 1957) and the second phase after Thai television media flourished (1958 - 1977). 

        The results revealed that in the era before the television media broadcasted in Thai society, product owners advertised their products in the printed media most. They hired the publishers, both foreigners and Thais, to create and publish the advertisements in their media.  When the television media began to broadcast in Thailand, Thai advertising industry had been an unprecedented growth.  However, advertising working process was not systematic because most advertisers were the international distribution companies in Thailand, which mainly operated the advertising work for the product owners.  Later, these companies gave the importance of advertising and set up small advertising departments in the companies as an in-house advertising agency. However, the work structure, positions and process still were not systematic. When the television media broadcasted all over the country, television commercial fees had increased. Additionally, a significant changes caused from Thai government enacted an important law titled the Announcement of the Revolutionary Council No. 281, which was a law regulating foreign business operations, as well as the Occupational Reservation Act was issued in 1974. As a result, these companies had to change their advertising work by established their advertising agencies in Thailand or changed their in-house advertising department to full service advertising agencies. The development of advertising business in Thailand had grown continuously.