Newly appointed Chief Executive Officer of StarTimes Nigeria, Mr. David Zhang, has disclosed that the media group has invested over $220 million in Nigeria over the last nine years.
While disclosing this in Lagos on Monday, the CEO also revealed that the company employs more than 1,000 Nigerians directly and 3,000 staffs indirectly through its dealers.
He also said that before the end of the second quarter of the year, the company will introduce a solar-powered panel to help manage the power problem the country is facing.
“We all know the epileptic nature of our power supply, this solar power also comes with T.V and inbuilt decoder, and if you already have your T.V and decoder, you can just buy the solar power panel and sack NEPA right away as from July. We are not relenting, Startimes is always thinking of how to make life better for Nigerians and Africans at large.
“Because of our influence in Africa, the Chinese Government selected us to implement the Access to digital satellite TV for 10,000 African villages, with Nigeria getting 1,000 of those villages. This project is almost completed and we are proud to be the contractors in all of Africa.”
Fight for market share: The company is making a lot of efforts geared at getting more subscribers in Nigeria and Africa. Recall that Nairametrics reported sometime last year that Star Times reduced one of its highest bouquets from N2,600 to N1,900.
Competition with DSTV: Meanwhile, just about the same period, one of StarTime’s major competitors, DSTV, increased its monthly subscription despite a court order to stop the hike.
Both companies have been at it for a while, throwing up marketing stunts to retain and attract prospective subscribers. While DSTV added android TV compatibility on their android app, StarTimes added more channels and content.
StarTimes seem determined to take over: StarTimes is currently negotiating for broadcasting rights for the upcoming African Cup of Nations, adding that it it also intends to secure broadcasting rights for the English Premier League (EPL) to Nigerian subscribers when the rights of its current holders expire.