MULTI-CHOICE NIGERIA IGNORES COURT ORDER, IMPLEMENTS NEW TARIFF HIKE FOR DSTV AND GOTV SUBSCRIBERS

Despite court order that Multi-Choice Nigeria should revert to old tariff regime, the South African company have started implementing new tariff for it's DSTV and GOTV subscribers.

A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos had restrained Multi-Choice operators of Digital Satellite Television, popularly known as DSTV, from implementing its new rates and increase in tariffs payable by its subscribers across board. The restraining order was given by Justice C.J. Aneke, sequel to a suit filed by two Lagos-based legal practitioners, Osasuyi Adebayo and Oluyinka Oyeniji.

In the class action suit, with number FHC/L/ CS/404/2015, Aneke granted the interim orders till the hearing of the Motion on Notice for injunction on April 16. He also ordered for the suit and the interim injunction to be published in national newspapers. Adebayo and Adeniji are challenging the arbitrary increase in tariffs.

The legal practitioners urged the court to order the second defendant, the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC)  to also implement Pay Per View, PPV, where subscribers choose the programmes they want and pay as they watch, which is being implemented in other parts of the world. In the order given Aneke ruled: “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 different classes of viewing or programmes bouquet, pending hearing and determination of the motion on notice.

But the Pay TV company according to The Society Nigeria findings have fully implemented the new tariff hike against the verdict of the court. Recently the company announced a 20 percent price increase for all its satellite pay TV bouquets in Nigeria to take effect from April 1, 2015. Presently subscribers of the DStv premium now pay  N13,980 as against the old tariff of N11,650, that means an increase of N2,330, those on the DStv family bouquet now pay N3,600 as against the fromer tariff of N3,000. DStv compact plus subscribers are now paying N9,420 instead of N7,850, while DStv Compact users pay N6,000 per month, up from N5,000. The tariff for DStv access now costs N1800 up from N1,500, while DStv extra view subscribers will no longer pay N1,800 but N2,100.

 

For GOtv Plus users, N1,500 tariff will no longer be acceptable but N1800, while GOtv bouquet users will now pay N1,200, from N1,000.