In commemoration of the 2024 Africa Day, MultiChoice, has emphasised the role of education in cultivating talent and sustainability in the African entertainment industry.
Aligning with the 2024 Africa Day theme: ‘Educate an African Fit For The 21st Century,’ the cable company said it remains committed to equipping aspiring industry professionals with the crucial “sustainable education” it takes to thrive in the rapidly changing film and television sector, through the MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF) initiative.
“An MTF survey has found that around 92% of MTF Academy graduates go on to work in the creative sector. Many of these young professionals go on to careers at MultiChoice, which bills itself as “Africa’s most-loved storyteller,” said MultiChoice West Africa CEO, Mr. John Ugbe.
“This level of absorption demonstrates another benefit of education in the African development journey: it unlocks the massive potential of the continent’s youthful population. Education is what will transform Africa’s 400 million young people aged between 15 and 35 into a generation of doctors, lawyers, financiers, engineers and media professionals,” he added.
On the cultural impact of MTF, he noted that training African creatives equips them to tell African stories.
He explained that MTF is an innovative approach to the idea of “educating Africa”, as it equips African talents to educate other Africans – culturally and spiritually – through the telling of African stories. “These African stories also allow Africa to show the rest of the world the power of its history and the talent of its people, as our productions take their rightful place on global content platforms,” Ugbe said.
Africa Day is celebrated yearly on May 25, in commemoration of the foundation of the Organization of African Unity in May 1963. MTF consists of three offerings – MTF Academies in major African capitals provide hands-on, relevant training for aspiring TV and film professionals; the MTF portal allows professionals to network and find work opportunities; while MTF masterclasses offer an ongoing programme of professional development. Most influential of these MTF offerings are the MTF Academies in Nairobi, Lagos and Lusaka.
If, as proposed by the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms during the week, the current Value Added Tax (VAT) rate is increased to 10 per cent from the current 7.5 per cent, it is certain that consumers will pay more than they currently do for many items. There are, of course, VAT-exempt items, but if the prices of other items rise on account of the implementation of the proposed VAT rate, their own prices will not remain the same.
The current VAT rate is barely four years old and the government is mulling a review because it needs more revenue in addition to the one it is currently getting from last year’s fuel subsidy removal. I am all for increased government revenue, especially from non-oil sources, as it expands the government’s capacity for service delivery. Theoretically, that is. I say this because in our peculiar country, where governments at all levels freak out when there is more money, it is not necessarily so.
The proposal, for some reasons, has not provoked the kind of public anger it should, perhaps because it has not been accepted. The recent announcement of the cyber protection levy to be charged on bank transfers has provoked greater anger. Neither of the two has provoked the scale of public anger at the recent tariff review by pay TV Company, MultiChoice Nigeria. I also wish to add that while the earlier announced electricity tariff hike got people angry for a few days, it soon dissolved into a joke.
We are, I must admit, quite good at making light of very serious issues, including life-threatening ones, the reason we are viewed as some of the happiest people on the planet. There was a surfeit of gags and memes on the band electricity consumers were placed into by the power distribution companies, after which we all took it on the chin. That has not happened with the MultiChoice price increase, which got social media platforms and everywhere you turn fizzing with rage. In fact, it never happens. If we are not campaigning for a boycott of its services, we are calling on the government, whose policies are messing up things, to squeeze MultiChoice till it leaves Nigeria.
On Wednesday, a tribunal of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FFCPC) resumed hearing in a case filed by a lawyer, Festus Onifade, contesting the right of MultiChoice to increase prices. The tribunal had, on 29 April, ordered MultiChoice to halt the announced price increase. This was sequel to the receipt from MultiChoice by the FCCPC’s acting Executive Vice Chairman, Dr. Adamu Abdullahi, a document stating reasons for the price review. Abdullahi promised to review what he received.
The very curious thing for me is that two years ago, the tribunal dismissed a similar case filed by the same applicant, who has since returned. It seems that the tribunal is established strictly for the purpose of reviewing MultiChoice price adjustments because it has no record of looking into rates charged by other private businesses. The FCCPC itself, as the tribunal ruled two years ago, has no power to regulate prices. I suspect that the FCCPC and/or the lawyer is getting kicks from the media attention this generates. I cannot see any other motivation.
The FCCPC is not alone. The National Assembly (NASS, for short), pardon my language, self-pleasures the same way. Its two chambers rarely concern themselves with stratospheric living costs, marked by consumer prices rising daily. Inflation at above 30 per cent is of little importance. Food inflation is treated like a minor irritation. But the NASS stops just short of asking for the declaration of a state of emergency any time MultiChoice increases prices. One chamber issues a resolution for an immediate price freeze, while the other issues one for a billing model. Neither bothers about the main economic issues bedeviling the country. MultiChoice may need to go for deliverance, as Pentecostals would say. Why?
It is the only private business for which people want to legislate prices. Nine years ago, two lawyers had their case against MultiChoice’s right to increase prices dismissed by a Federal High Court, which ruled that they were not obligated to use its services. We saw another dismissal by the FCCPC Tribunal in 2022. The tribunal, whose jurisdiction MultiChoice has challenged, heard another one until Wednesday. Last year, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) threatened to attack MultiChoice offices if it did not bring down prices. This year, the same association, completely indifferent to the soaring costs of education and cost of living, has called on the Federal Government and NASS to compel MultiChoice to go back to its old prices.
It is a mystery that nobody is taking bakers to court for increasing the prices of bread, rice sellers for increasing the prices of rice, yam sellers for raising the price of a tuber to N4,000 or campaign for the boycott of our port because of too many charges to importers.
Over the last four months, several brands, particularly in the fast-moving consumer goods market, have increased prices multiple times. These increases often go unnoticed, unlike MultiChoice’s. Prices of carbonated soft drinks have doubled in recent months, with a bottle of Pepsi now selling for N350 or more. Meanwhile, members of the “Saint Bottles Cathedral” are now paying N700 for the cheapest beer, up from N500 two months ago. Despite these price hikes, many remain silent. However, the same individuals are among those criticizing DStv subscription prices.
A few days ago, I stepped out onto my small balcony for some fresh air, only to find the air stifling and filled with smoke from a nearby source. Investigating, I discovered a charcoal stove in a neighbour’s compound, as they had been priced out of cooking gas, now selling for N1,500 per kilogram.
I recently saw a woman, whose husband is a vociferous social commentator, lament bitterly on a social media platform, about how she bought a carton of a particular brand of milk for N56,000 in January and had to fork out N92,000 for the same content in April. Surprisingly, her husband remained silent about this. While milk is considered an essential commodity, such a drastic price hike failed to capture his attention. Yet, shortly after MultiChoice announced its price increase, he took to social media to publish an epistle.
Like many other service providers, MultiChoice has done nothing wrong with its recent price adjustments; it is Nigerians who need to adjust their mindset towards the company. Therefore, its price adjustments should be viewed in the same light as adjustments for other commodities.
MultiChoice Nigeria Limited has queried the jurisdictional capacity of the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal (CCPT) to issue an order barring it from hiking its tariffs.
The firm is also contending that the issue raised in the case before the tribunal (tariffs’ hike) is res judicata (had been pronounced on by a court) and that it was a completed act, which has been carried out.
While addressing the three-member tribunal on Tuesday, May 7, MultiChoice’s lawyer, Moyosore Onigbanjo (SAN) said his client filed an application on April 30 challenging the jurisdiction of the tribunal to make the order it made on April 29.
Onigbanjo, the immediate past Attorney General of Lagos State, said he also filed a memorandum of conditional appearance on the same April 30.
He urged the court to first hear and determine his client’s application before taking any further steps in the case challenging Multi-Choice’s recent raise of its tariffs.
Onigbanjo contended that where the jurisdiction of a court is challenged, the issue must first be decided before the court could take further steps in the case.
The tribunal had on April 29 issued an ex-parte interim injunction restraining MultiChoice from increasing DSTV and GOTV tariffs scheduled to begin on May 1, pending the determination of the case, marked: CCPT/OP/02/2024, filed by a lawyer, Festus Onifade, who claimed to also be a subscriber.
At the mention of the case on Tuesday, Onifade sought to have his pending motion heard, but was opposed by Onigbanjo and the lawyer to the second defendant, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), M. Adeke demanded time to file their responses.
Onifade also drew the tribunal’s attention to some fresh motions he filed, including a “notice of consequence of disobedience to order of the court (Form 48).
He also spoke about a motion in which he is seeking an order, directing MultiChoice to pay of N1billion or any amount the tribunal deems appropriate as a penalty for its alleged deliberate disobedience and failure to comply with the interim order issued on April 29.
In a supporting document, Onifade claimed that despite being aware of the order, which was duly served on MultiChoice on April 29, the firm deliberately neglected to comply with the order and willfully increased the tariffs on its products and services on May 1.
Onifade claimed that MultiChoice has a history of disobeying court/tribunal orders.
He recalled that in 2015, Justice C. J Aneke of the Federal High Court (FHC) in Ikeja, Lagos gave an order, restraining MultiChoice from increasing the prices of its products and services, but it went ahead and increased the tariffs despite the order of the court.
Onifade also noted that in 2018, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, who was then sitting at the Federal High Court in Abuja granted an order sought by the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) – which has been rechristened FCCPC – restraining MultiChoice from increasing its prices pending the substantive case, it obeyed the order.
The lawyer added that the tribunal granted an order on March 22, 2022, restraining MultiChoice from increasing its tariffs, but it went ahead with the tariffs’ hike on April 1, claiming it was a completed act.
The tribunal has adjourned till May 16 for a hearing.
A Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal (CCPT) sitting in Abuja has granted an application for substituted service of the interim order, restraining Multi-Choice Nigeria Limited from its plan to increase tariffs on DStv and Gotv packages beginning From May 1.
The three-member tribunal, presided over by Saratu Shafii, granted the applicant’s motion following allegations that officers of the pay-TV firm in Abuja office refused to receive service of the order and other court documents.
The applicant, Festus Onifade, told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday that the CCPT bailiff alleged that one of the company’s top managers at the Abuja office said the documents be channelled through their Lagos office, which is the headquarters.
The tribunal, therefore, gave the order of substituted service pursuant to Section 48 of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA), 2018; and Part N, Order 14 Rule 11(1) of the CCPT Rule, 2021.
In the certified true copy of the order of substituted service, Shaffi directed that the ex-parte order in suit number: CCPT/OP/2/2024, be pasted at the corporate headquarters or any known address of the branches of the Multi-Choice Nigeria Limited across Nigeria.
She also ordered that the documents be sent to the company’s “known email address, social media handles and any means of communication publicly known for Multi-Choice and shall also be pasted in the CCPT communication outlet.
The documents had since been pasted at the Multi-Choice Abuja office located at Wuse II.
NAN reports that the tribunal had, on Monday, stopped MultiChoice from increasing its tariffs and cost of products and services scheduled to begin today.
The panel, who gave the order following an ex-parte motion moved by Ejiro Awaritoma, counsel for the applicant, restrained the firm from going ahead with impending price increase pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice filed before it.
Onifade, in the suit marked: CCPT/OP/2/2024, had dragged Multi-Choice Nigeria Ltd and Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) before the tribunal.
In the suit filed on April 29, Onifade, also a legal practitioner, sought two orders.
These include, “an order of interim injunction of this honourable tribunal restraining the 1st defendant whether by themselves, her privies, assigns by whatsoever name called from going ahead with impending price increase schedule to take effect from 1st May, 2024, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.
“An order restraining the 1st defendant from taking any step(s) that may negatively affect the rights of the claimant and other consumers in respect of the suit pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice.”
Multi-choice had recently announced a price increment across its DStv and GOtv packages effective May 1, 2024.
The pay-TV company claimed the price hike was due to the cost of business operations in Nigeria.
NAN reports that the company had, on April 1, 2022, hike the prices of all its packages despite public outcry.
Prior to the effective date, Onifade filed a suit before Thomas Okosun-led CCPT, seeking an order restraining Multi-Choice from going ahead with planned increase, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice dated and filed on March 30, 2022.
Although the tribunal granted the ex-parte motion, directing parties to maintain status quo ante bellum, the company went ahead with the price increase on DStv and Gotv subscriptions and other products on the said date.
The claimant, however, raised the issue of contempt, accusing MultiChoice of disobeying the tribunal order which restrained them from going ahead with the price increase.
He accused the company of having penchant for disregard to court order.
And on April 11, 2022, after the arguments by counsel for the parties, the tribunal again ordered MultiChoice to revert back to the old prices by maintaining status quo of its March 30, 2022 order, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive matter.
But this was all to no avail as counsel for MultiChoice, Jamiu Agoro, challenged the jurisdiction of the tribunal to hear the matter as the claimant lacked the locus to institute the action.
Agoro had argued that the order of the tribunal made on April 11, 2022, asking MultiChoice to revert to old rates was made against a completed act, the firm, having increased its tariffs on April 1, 2022.
The lawyer argued that MultiChoice had already configured all their devices for the increase in tariff to take effect before the tribunal made its order.
Agoro added that there was no evidence presented before the tribunal of damage that the claimant had suffered.
The Thomas Okosun-led tribunal, on Sept 6, 2022, consequently dismissed Onifade’s suit, saying the power to regulate prices of goods and services does not reside in the FCCPC, the regulatory agency.
According to the tribunal, the power to regulate prices of goods and services only resides in the president.
However, the judgement, which had been appealed against, is presently before the Court of Appeal in Abuja..
Onifade, in the instant suit, is contesting that Multi-Choice had failed to follow due process of law in accordance with Section 128 of FCCPA, 2018, in its announcement of the price hike on the grounds of short notice given to customers.
A Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal (CCPT) in Abuja has stopped MultiChoice Nigeria Limited from increasing its tariffs and cost of products and services scheduled to begin tomorrow. A three-member tribunal, led by Saratu Shafii, gave the interim order following an ex parte motion moved by Ejiro Awaritoma, counsel to Festus Onifade, the applicant. In the ruling, the tribunal restrained MultiChoice from increasing the subscription rate pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice filed before it. “The first defendant is hereby restrained from taking any step(s) that may negatively affect the rights of the claimant and other consumers in respect of the suit pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice,” Shafii ruled.
The judge also directed all parties in the suit to appear before the tribunal at 10 a.m. on May 7 for the hearing and determination of the motion on notice. Onifade, a lawyer, filed the suit against MultiChoice Nigeria Limited and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) yesterday. On April 24, MultiChoice Nigeria announced an increase in the cost of subscriptions for its DStv and GOtv packages. The pay TV firm cited the rise in the cost of business operations as the rationale behind the price increase.
A Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal (CCPT) sitting in Abuja, on Monday, restrained Multi-Choice Nigeria Limited from increasing its tariffs and cost of products and services scheduled to begin on May 1.
The three-member tribunal, presided over by Saratu Shafii, gave the interim order following an ex-parte motion moved by Ejiro Awaritoma, counsel for the applicant, Festus Onifade.
The tribunal, in a ruling, restrained Multi-Choice from going ahead with impending price increase schedule to take effect from May 1, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice filed before it.
“The 1st defendant is hereby restrained from taking any step(s) that may negatively affect the rights of the claimant and other consumers in respect of the suit pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice,” Shafii declared.
She, therefore, directed all parties in the suit to appear before tribunal on Ma 7 at 10am for the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.
These include, “an order of interim injunction of this honourable tribunal restraining the 1st defendant whether by themselves, her privies, assigns by whatsoever name called from going ahead with impending price increase schedule to take effect from 1st May, 2024, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.
“An order restraining the 1st defendant from taking any step(s) that may negatively affect the rights of the claimant and other consumers in respect of the suit pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice.”
Other members of the tribunal include Thomas Okosun and Dr. Umar Duhu.
NAN reports that the company had, on April 1, 2022, hike the prices of all its packages.(NAN)
MultiChoice Nigeria has called for a collective effort to tackle the scourge of piracy on the growth of the creative economy in Nigeria as it commemorates the April 26 World Intellectual Property Day.
In a statement issued on Friday, the company urged the government and stakeholders to unify against piracy in a bid to foster the growth of the creative industry in Nigeria. MultiChoice reiterated its commitment to engineering a decline in public acceptance of pirated content by embarking on a public education campaign to raise public consciousness.
According to the statement, there is an extensive link between the prevalent patronage of counterfeit goods and organised crime, while users of pirated content are likely to be more vulnerable to cybersecurity risks.
The statement reads partly, “A 2009 study conducted by RAND corporation found extensive links between film piracy, organised crime and terrorist groups. The purchase of any kind of counterfeit goods can be traced to organised crime. Stolen content may be entertaining, but it is being used to fund the most harmful, grotesque crimes on the planet, including human trafficking, terrorism, gambling, drug dealing and child pornography.
“The use of illegally pirated content such as films, series, music, etc opens online users to very real personal risks, such as malware, identity theft, fraud and financial ruin. However, the most critical risk is that it makes them complicit in international crimes destroying millions of lives.
“Other destructive impacts of content piracy are that the creative industry suffers from lost jobs and income; audiences suffer due to reduced choice; while the industry and the entire economy suffers through discouraged investment. Culturally, content piracy also robs African creatives of the opportunity to tell their own stories.”
The company also hinted of plans to roll out informative clips in partnership with the Ministry of Art, Culture and the Creative Economy, and the Nigerian Communication Commission.
The clips will spotlight existing legislations and ongoing regulatory initiatives designed to curtail piracy in Nigeria.
It may be recalled that in November 2023, MultiChoice held its anti-piracy workshop which hosted journalists, regulators, content creators and other stakeholders in a bid to devise and proffer sustainable solutions to the perennial challenge.
Over the last few days, a 3D animation clip of Charterhouse Lagos, a recently launched British model primary school has kept the Nigerian social media space buzzing. While the school’s eye-catching facilities blew minds, fees per session, pegged at N42 million and application fee of N2 million left jaws hanging in addition to a lot of head scratching.
Trawling through the comment sections of media platforms with the story, I was astounded to see a scale of support for the fees that I did not think was possible. Many commenters did not find anything wrong with the eye-watering fees charged, as they argued that the school, in addition to providing learning, also provides a viable networking. Notably, a thought leader in the education and career development space argued in a post on his X and his LinkedIn page that the school is for 1% of the population and the investment is a plus for Nigerians and the education system.
I found similar sentiments in the comments alluding to the fact that parents who cannot afford to send their children to the school should look for cheaper alternatives. I found two things instructive. The first is the percentage of the population fees charged by Charterhouse Lagos can possibly affect. The second is that those who find the fees way too steep (I do) are free to seek cheaper alternatives.
That takes me to the outrage at the just announced tariff increase by pay television company, MultiChoice. The announcement, as usual, is like headbutting a hornet’s nest. Social media platforms have been a giant broth pot of ire since Wednesday evening. There are no surprises that there have been calls for boycott, price freeze, implementation of pay as you go or pay per view billing model in addition to downright xenophobic dog whistling. All that for reviewing prices of a service used-directly-by less than five percent of the population? Stunning.
Education, healthcare, electricity, food and fuel, cooking gas, services/products used by almost every Nigerian, have witnessed steady and sharp price increases in the last eight years. The increases became much steeper starting from last year with leaping inflation which, in March, stood at 33.7 per cent. None of the price increases provoked the kind of public ire that MultiChoice price review has provoked and has always provoked.
If such outrage is a general response to every price increase in the country, a phenomenon which has become a norm, this writer would have not have bothered to to challenge what is selective and Disproportionate outrage by Nigerian consumers, regulators and the National Assembly. Take for example the opening story above, I am yet to find the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) embark on a protest like they did when MultiChoice adjusted its price last year. One would expect them to be more concerned in this situation considering it involves education.
Similarly, since the removal of petroleum subsidy last May, the prices of various essential commodities have been on the rise. The price of Premium Motor Spirit has hovered between N600 and N700 across various states in Nigeria. Since January 2024, a bag of rice has been sold between the range of N75,000 and N90,000. The price of cooking gas has surged from N10,000 to N15,800. Yet, no individual or corporate organisation has attempted to sue the Federal Government for the stifling hardship the masses are undergoing like two lawyers did when MultiChoice increased its rate in 2015.
The two men challenged MultiChoice’s right to increase prices at a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos. Their suit was dismissed. Another lawyer, two years ago, did something similar when he challenged the pay TV company’s right to adjust prices at the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal. He also lost his bid for a prize freeze.
Earlier in April, the Federal Government announced a 300% increment for electricity tariffs from N68 per Kilowatt-hour to N228. The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission disclosed segmentation of electricity consumers into various band categories for the purpose of power distribution and tariff pricing. Distribution companies have been accused of failing to fulfil their obligations despite price increment. Still, no individual or corporate organisation has petitioned the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission like a certain Mr Festus Onifade did when MultiChoice announced price adjustments in 2022.
In February, Nigerian Breweries announced another price adjustment for its products, blaming the rising cost of production for its decision. One would expect the FCCPC, National Assembly and other consumer protection bodies to swoop in and attempt to halt such increments like they would do if it was MultiChoice. To my surprise, beyond social media grumblings, none of what I expected happened. This begs the question, why do we treat MultiChoice like a public enemy with our hypocritical and selective outrage when they announce price adjustments?
Critics usually like to claim that unlike other products and services, MultiChoice is a monopoly that has failed to allow its competitors thrive, a dishonest sentiment driven by hypocrisy. StarTimes is very much active in the market and they offer DTH and DTT services to willing customers. There are options.
Nigerians, I am afraid, tell themselves a lie that they do not have options. That is when you can have a monopoly. But as the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission Tribunal ruled in 2022, no monopoly exists in the sector. MultiChoice, for example, has exclusive broadcasting rights to the Premier League the same way StarTimes owns exclusive rights to Bundesliga and Saudi Pro League. For some strange reasons, I do not hear them accused of monopolistic conduct.
It is also worth noting that when MultiChoice was on the brink of failing to secure broadcasting rights to the AFCON 2023 tournament and StarTimes had secured access to the matches, they did not hesitate to adjust their subscription rates to reflect economic realities. Much to my surprise, their announcement was not greeted with the same intensity of adversarial reactions that would have trailed MultiChoice’s price adjustment announcement.
To go a step further, aggrieved customers allege that MultiChoice offers no value beyond their exclusive rights to Premier League content. I expect that competitors will be keen to overtake MultiChoice by investing in superior local content for entertainment that customers will find irresistible. But the truth is Africa Magic has committed more investments to the production of content across various genres such as local and indigenous movies and series, reality shows, film festivals and awards among others.
We are all aware that Nigeria has recorded 14 consecutive increases in its inflation figures, currently pegged at 33.20% in March 2024 from 31.70% recorded in February according to the National Bureau of Statistics. This means since MultiChoice last announced price adjustment in November 2023 when the inflation rate was still 28.20%, there has been at least 5% increase in the general cost of production in the market. Do customers expect their subscription prices to remain the same when the cost of production for the content they enjoy has spiked astronomically? After all, the company is not immune to the various macroeconomic factors which have made production more expensive.
It would be out of character for the National Assembly to not set up a committee hearing aimed at directing MultiChoice to suspend the planned price adjustment or adopt a PAYG model. Unfortunately, the lawmakers seem to always jettison the resolutions reached by their predecessors when they do this. The government does not have the right to determine prices for a private entity, especially if the costs reflect the country’s true economic realities. And if they insist on doing so, they have to be ready to embark on a general price control mechanism for all commodities and services. If they attempt to do so, you and I can agree that would be a fool’s errand. Similarly, asking for PAYG in a country with a GDP Per Capita of $1011 is to be removed from reality.
Instead, the National Assembly should be more concerned with improving the ease of doing business in Nigeria to combat inflation and to stem the tide of multinational companies leaving the country. The likes of Procter and Gamble, GlaxoSmithKline, Sanofi-Aventi, Bolt Food among others have already left and we are feeling the harsh impact of their exit. We should not cause self-harm to ourselves by allowing our hypocrisy to make us drive MultiChoice away too.
The Association of Telephone, Cable TV and Internet Subscribers of Nigeria (ATCIS) have urged the Federal Government to intensify efforts to end Multichoice Nigeria’s monopoly of the Pay Television market, following a 25 percent upward price review by the company which takes effect from May 1, 2024.
The Multichoice price hike which comes four months after the last increment across the board, has also attracted the attention of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), which has proposed that relevant stakeholders would examine the recent price hike in MultiChoice cable subscriptions. This according to the FCCPC’s acting CEO, Adamu Abdullahi, is to ensure that Nigerian customers receive value for their money.
The National President, ATCIS, Mr Sina Bilesanmi, while reacting to the new DSTV and GOtv tariff hike, equally noted that government needed to level the playing field for other companies looking to enter the Cable TV market. He argued that Nigeria needed new international investors, who would be willing to bring in ‘Pay-Per-View’ options to end MuItichoice monopoly.
“As an association, we have tried to have several dialogues and collaborations with Multichoice to voice our concerns over the ongoing increase in pay TV subscription fees, but to no avail,” Bilesanmi said, stressing that Nigerians were being exploited by Multichoice and its other colleagues in the PayTV market,” he said.
According to Abdullahi, “The fact that they have stuck to only monthly prepaid subscription model against people’s will says it all. This is not a Nigerian company so they are not supposed to have power over us, the government needs to do something to stop MuItichoice from extorting Nigerians.
“If MuItichoice refuses to listen to us this time around, we will have to campaign and convince Nigerians to stop subscribing to their services.
“The sad truth is that they keep increasing tariff but giving us repetitive programmes to watch, there is nothing new on DSTV and GOtv,” he said.
Multichoice Nigeria, owners of DStv and GOtv, has announced a price hike for its subscription packages.
The new prices will take effect from May 1, 2024, a few months after its last price upward review.
This was announced in a statement titled, ‘Price Adjustment on DStv and GOtv Packages,’ read in part: “On Wednesday, 1 May 2024 we will adjust our prices across all our packages on DStv and GOtv.
“We understand the impact this change may have on you our valued customer, but the rise in the cost of business operations has led us to make this difficult decision.
“It remains our mission to provide the best entertainment and viewing experience to you and are committed to continue to deliver high-quality content and unparalleled service.”
Cable TV blamed the latest increase on the “rise in the cost of business operations.”
