Major satellite television service in Sub-Saharan Africa Multichoice, which owns Dstv and Gotv has reportedly slashed the subscription prices in Nigeria, following a court order mandating the company to avoid the hike in price.
Reports revealed that checks on the company’s app show that it has reverted to the old prices after subscribers paid the new rates for May 2024 after the new hike.
The new DStv prices have been revised, with Premium, package subscribers now paying N29,500 instead of N37,000, Compact+ package subscribers paying N19,800 instead of N25,000, and so on. Similarly, GOtv subscribers will now pay the previous rates for their packages. N5,700 for GQtv Max, N3,950 for GOtv Joli, and N2,700 for the lowest package, GOtv Jinja, which subscribers will now pay from the new N3,300 rate.
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Meanwhile, it is still being determined if the company is offering a month-free subscription as ordered by the court. However, there have been no comments from the company’s officials yet.
This development is coming after Multichoice blamed Nigeria’s harsh economic condition which saw active DStv subscribers in the country decline by 18%. The company stated in its financial result for the year ended March 31, 2024, that the decline in Nigeria affected its overall subscriber database leading to a 9% decline for the year.
Background of the Story
In April 2024, Multichoice announced an increase in prices on the DSTV and GOtv packages.
In a statement titled ‘Price Adjustment on DStv and GOtv Packages’, signed by its Chief Executive Officer, John Ugbe, sent to its customers, it noted that the increase was necessitated by the rise in the cost of business operations. According to the statement, the increment would take effect on May 1, 2024.
The development sparked outrage among customers, who felt betrayed by Multichoice’s disregard for the legal system and its customers’ interests.
Moving forward to May 2024, the tribunal fined MultiChoice Nigeria the sum of N150 million for disobeying its order. The order had restrained the pay-TV company from increasing its monthly subscription, pending the determination of the suit brought before it by an Abuja-based lawyer, Festus Onifade.
The tribunal had also ordered the company to provide its Nigerian customers with a one-month free subscription to its DStv and GOtv packages.
Reacting to the judgment through a statement, MultiChoice disagreed with the ruling and vowed to file an appeal against it.
The statement partly reads,
“MultiChoice Nigeria is aware of the recent ruling by the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal regarding its jurisdiction to entertain a price regulation matter. We disagree with the ruling, and will therefore file an appeal against the said ruling. As the matter is currently sub-judice, we are restrained from making further comments,” the company added.