One of the leading Pay TV service company in Nigeria, Multichoice Nigeria has appealed an injunction granted by Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, over DSTV’s subscription increment.
In a statement, the company stated that it has also filed a stay of execution and the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) had also been joined in the suit.
The company said the DSTV’s subscription hike infringement is an affront to the free market economy, in which the country operates.
The statement read,
“We believe that the order is an affront to the free market economy and we have now filed a Notice of Appeal and an application for stay of execution, pending the hearing of the appeal. The CPC has been accordingly served with the requisite processes.
“In light of the application for a stay of execution, the status quo, therefore, prevails.
“MultiChoice Nigeria will always operate within the ambit of the law and will continue with the authorities to ensure the best outcome for our customers. We remain committed to providing the best quality of entertainment and premium content at the best possible prices.”
Why the infringement on the DSTV price hike
There have been allegations of possible unfair trade practices that make it possible for DSTV to have exclusivity on contents, gain market dominance and fix price at will. While these allegations were yet to be given the proper attention, DSTV ignored the government’s request for critical documents.
CPC Director General, Babatunde Irukera had said the Pay TV preempted investigations and acted in bad faith by agreeing to a consent order to hold terms and conditions in 24 months, but increased prices on the eve of signing Consent Order to undermine regulatory process.
MultiChoice had earlier announced an increase of its subscription fees on its digital satellite platform, DStv, with effect from August 1, 2018.
The subscribers on DStv Premium package was expected to see a price increase from N14,700 to N15,800, Compact Plus from N9,900 to N10,650, Compact from N6,300 to N6,800, Family from N3,800 to N4,000 and on Access, N1,900 to N2,000.
Following DStv’s announcement to increase subscription fees, the CPC got an interim injunction from a Federal high court sitting in Abuja, presided over by Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, halting the hike in DSTV subscription by MultiChoice Nigeria Limited.
Isnt it time we have other satellite operating in this country to give dstv competition or rather scrapped dstv