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DStv slashes subscription across Africa, plans increase in Nigeria

Multichoice limited, owners of DStv and GoTV, is set to reduce the monthly DStv subscription fees between 11 percent and 21 per cent from November 1, 2016 in several African countries, excluding Nigeria.

According to findings, DStv would also add several exciting channels to the lower-tiered bouquets in the black nations to boost the content offering for cheaper packages and add content value. The countries that would benefit from the offer are Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, Uganda, Zimbabwe and Botswana, neglecting Nigeria, its biggest market.
There are chances that the company may soon increase the subscription fee in Nigeria.
Some of the new channels the subscribers in these countries would view are a sister channel to the Telenovela, Eva+; pop-up M-Net channels, M-Net Movies, BlockParty and Harry Potter among others.

Some of the subscribers said in separate interviews, disclosed that they would stop their subscriptions if the company embarked on what they described as ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’. For instance, Engr. Toba Biobaku, one of the numerous subscribers of DStv, alleged the company is allergic to providing good services for Nigerians at affordable prices.

To the manager of one of the construction company in the country, the company has passion for fleecing Nigerians without value for their money. Despite the current economic recession, he stated that several Nigerians still renew their subscription and the reward they could get from Multichoice is to use their monies to reward subscribers in other African nations.

“When Multichoice bowed to pressures made by consumers and the Consumers Protection Council recently when it introduced a customer care toll free lines easily, I knew it that the company has hidden agenda. The most painful part of it is that most of us are being cheated without compensation as it failed to clear the E-16 code from our television sets for a week. When the error was erased later, my subscription was not extended,” he lamented.

Another subscriber that is perturbed about the plan of the operator of the pay TV service is the Managing Director of Jumobite Fashion. The premium subscriber of DStv threatened to lead a peaceful protest to the Tiamiyu Savage street, Victoria Island, Lagos headquarters of the company along with some of her friends, who are also premium subscribers.

For her, the tariff of the bouquet is too expensive compared to what other subscribers in Kenya, Zimbabwe and Botswana pay. According to her, asking Nigerians viewers to pay more for few channels and asking their counterparts in those countries to pay less for more is absurd and a way of saying Nigerians are gullible.

There are indications that hundreds of thousands of the subscribers of the pay TV firm might not renew their monthly subscription if the company embark on the fee slashed. Findings revealed that the company makes an average of about N8 billion from over 4 million patrons every month in Nigeria and about N80 billion as turnover per year.

A top source close to the management of Multichoice Nigeria, who claimed anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, said that the company decided to slashed fees in the countries after it observed that about 40 per cent of its subscribers had refused to renew their subscriptions due to economic recession that bites harder their compared to Nigeria, which has been recently rated the biggest economy in the continent.

“The stiff DStv price hikes put subscribers under pressure in those countries and we have lost about 300,000 subscribers in the countries in one year as people could no longer afford the service or no longer saw it as valuable enough. When reviewing our packages and prices in each country, we take into account local dynamics such as inflation, content costs, foreign exchange rates, local taxes and overheads required for each business.

“To compensate our Nigerian viewers, we will introduce more amazing channels to the existing entertaining programmes. We have also embark on an aggressive marketing and follow up innovation to ensure most of our subscribers do not abandon their bouquets. We call subscribers a few days to the expiration of their subscriptions to remind them about the reasons they should not miss out of the global village,” she revealed.

But in a quick response, a business lawyer, Bar. Seun Adewole, stated that while most Nigerians suffered in silence, foreign companies like Multichoice ripped them off their hard earned money. Aside from the fact that he also believe it is wrong for an international company to set double standards for its patrons, he said that subscribers should fight for their rights using legal means by questioning the decisions of the firm, sending complaints to regulatory agencies like the Consumers’ Protection Council and the Federal Ministry of Communication and Technology.

“Sending complaints to the National Assembly had proven to be a waste of time and resources. Similar issues had been discussed on the floor of the assembly but none had yielded any desired result as it appears that gifts exchange hands after a lot of noise had been made by the lawmakers. For instance, the house of representative had debate on the pay as you view initiative for years and nothing has been done to it and I am not surprised that the company had excluded Nigerians from the beneficiaries of the price slash,” he stated.

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Entertainment

Court dismisses suit against DSTV rates.

A Federal High Court in Lagos has dismissed a lawsuit seeking the reversal of the recent 20 per cent increment on DStv subscription rates. Recall that an aggrieved customer filed the suit many weeks back. ‎
The presiding judge, Justice C.J. Aneke‎  in ruling held that the court has no power to regulate the price of services that a business is offering to its customers. He described the suit as an abuse of court proceedings adding that any customer who is displeased with MultiChoice’s terms can opt out of the agreement.
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Entertainment

Court restrains DSTV from hiking subscription fees

Justice C. J Aneke of the federal high court in Ikoyi, Lagos has granted an order of interim injunction restraining Multichoice from enforcing its planned increase in cost of the different classes of its programmes on DSTV.
The suit was filed by Adebayo Osasuyi, a DSTV subscriber/customer, at the court in Ikoyi.

The Judge stated, “That an order of interim injunction is hereby granted to the parties to maintain the status quo restraining the 1st defendant (Multichoice/DSTV) from giving effect or enforcing its planned increase in cost of the different classes of viewing or programmes bouquet, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.”

“That an order is hereby granted certifying the plaintiffs’ claim as a class action for themselves as individual subscribers, other corporate subscribers, distributors and retailers of the 1st defendants’ services.
“That an order is hereby granted restraining any other person whether individual or corporate from instituting any other action as may be related to the action against the defendant to prevent multiplicity of lawsuits pursuant to the appointment of the plaintiffs in the class action but may instead opt in or out of this action”.

The case has been  adjourned to the 16th April 2015.‎
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Etcetera shares his thoughts on the hike in DSTV subscription fees

I have decided to lend my voice to the call for sanctions against Dstv in Nigeria, despite the fact that I have been cautioned by a couple of entertainers that speaking up against the almighty cable network may result in the banning of my works on its network. Yes, it is true that challenging these multinationals in Nigeria attracts sanctions especially for entertainers, but I have decided to speak up because I am one of the millions of Nigerians affected by any increment in subscription charges.

Moreover, what’s the point of having my works on a platform that my fans can’t afford? Every entertainer who’s chickened out of this campaign for his/her selfish interest should know that the continuous indifference of Dstv to our plights over the years is a slap on the face of every Nigerian, inclusive of the entertainers themselves. 

These are the same entertainers that have complained of being shortchanged by Dstv for many years. Nigerian movie producers have complained of receiving peanuts for their works on the same network.

Nawa ooo! Should anyone be afraid to express his/her dissatisfaction with a product he/she is paying for? Let’s make Dstv understand that it is licensed to do business in Nigeria for none other reasons than providing value and the value it delivers has to justify the price charged. Otherwise, we will be persuaded to look for alternatives or invent our own like the Alaba boys are doing. No business can leave out customer value and satisfaction for ever, not even a beast like Dstv.
Enough of its appalling pricing strategy. Heck, they have given us a truck load of reasons to boycott their services and it is incredibly ridiculous that NBC which is tasked with the responsibility of protecting our interest has chosen to stay mute even with all our complaints. This is one of many reasons why this country sucks.

Dstv reception is so damn terrible that spitting on the floor where its dish is pegged instantly scrambles the signals. The long rebooting process is another chapter in a voluminous book of frustrations. I wonder if the authorities of Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation are not experiencing this same horrendous customer service and monopolistic tactics that we have forever complained about.
Well, I won’t be surprised to hear that Dstv has special packages for NBC staff. Or how does one explain why its bad PR and continued price hikes haven’t crippled its business in Nigeria? Can Dstv subject South Africans to such substandard services? It has a very unique and annoying way of practising price discrimination, by selling the same product at different prices to different groups of consumers.
What’s most annoying is its refusal to communicate any valid reason for this exploitative act. This warrants for a total boycott of its services across the country. Now that it has seen that we have started complaining and threatening to boycott its services, it will quickly roll out a new promo and a small discount on a new package to keep us on board.
Nigerians should be smart this time around. We shouldn’t accept anything less than a revert to the old price. For Christ sake, must we consistently haggle Dstv to keep prices down or treat us equally with people in its homeland? Sad thing is that our efforts don’t necessarily ensure rates won’t continue to rise because the regulators who are supposed to keep it in check have been compromised.
With all the illegalities perpetuated by these multinationals, isn’t it a miracle that none has been sanctioned? I once asked a Chinese neighbour if he has a permit to drive in Nigeria and the goon waved a N50 note at me saying, ‘this is my driver’s licence.’
These foreign investors use paid lobbyists within our corrupt government to ward off sanctions. I am sure that with this ongoing campaign for Dstv’s sanction, some government officials would have received bogus cheques to turn a deaf ear to our cries.
I don’t even want to think of its endless promo offers and how it makes it extremely difficult for me to know what I am paying for and what services I am actually receiving. Not mentioning the complex pricing schemes that make it almost impossible for anyone to figure out how much any of the bundles it is offering actually costs, especially once the promo is over.
Dstv can’t tell us it doesn’t know that the absence of simple, transparent pricing reduces consumer confidence and increases distrust but it has deliberately chosen to capitalise on the monopoly status given to it by our corrupt government to deny us the benefits of simpler pricing, fewer plans, and greater transparency.
Maybe it is so big that its competitors will have to attack multiple markets to fully take it down but it should also know that if a company’s success routinely sacrifices the satisfaction of its customers, it inevitably becomes more difficult to sustain growth and generate revenue.
The question now is, when will NTA and other local stations make use of innovative methods and bypass their old ways of doing things so that if Dstv doesn’t attempt to change and provide efficient customer services, its future in Nigeria will no longer be as bright as it thinks.

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Entertainment

EBONYLIFE TV LAUNCH: MO'ABUDU RECEIVES STEVE FORBES (PHOTOS)

The wait is over. The EbonyLife TV launch is taking place today. American publishing Executive and Founder of Forbes Media, Steve Forbes who is the keynote speaker at the historical event arrived Nigeria yesterday evening, he was warmly received by the host, Mo' Abudu and her crew.

Ebony Life TV has secured the channel 165 spot on DSTV, it will focus on entertainment and lifestyle programming. Based in Tinapa, Calabar, Ebony Life TV is being regarded as 'Africa's first global black entertainment network'. It will be seen in over 40 African countries on DSTV and then SKY in the UK, and DISH in the US.

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Entertainment

DSTV LAUNCHES WALKA MOBILE TV DEVICE

DSTV Nigeria has launched "Walka", a
mobile TV device which will enable its subscribers to watch about 15 channels on the go via the DStv Mobile DVB-H network.
Speaking on the innovation, Mayo Okunola, General Manager, Digital Mobilek Television, DSTV explained that the service would be free of charge to DSTV subscribers who are
currently on premium bouquet.
Sold for N17, 500 a piece, non-DSTV subscribers can choose between a mini package of about 11channels for N680 per month or a Maxi package of 14 channels for N1,680 per month.

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