Broadcasting
Eskimi Founder, Vytautas Paukstys, Highlights Global Digital Trends to Watch in 2022, Beyond
Today, we can attest to the rise in connected consumers who are demanding almost immediate engagement with brands to satisfy their quests. Companies are now investing in ecommerce, moving into social mostly via mobile.
Considering all that is going on with digital technology and the impacts, it is mind-blowing. So, evolving consumer behaviour is an opportunity for businesses and practitioners in the IMC industry to rethink strategy.
Then, the question: How can the practitioners leverage all these tools to optimize their operations?
This inspired Vytautas (Vytas) Paukstys, Founder/CEO, Eskimi’s presentation at the Marketing Edge IMC Quarterly Virtual Summit under the theme: ‘Maximizing Marketing Efficiency in the Age of Changing Consumer Behaviour’.
For over 15 years, Vytautas has been a noteworthy leader in the digital advertising and technology space.
As the Founder and CEO of Eskimi DSP, one of the leading global programmatic advertising platforms, he understands the trends in the market across the globe.
Before leading this venture, he founded Eskimi Social, one of the pioneering mobile-first communities in Africa and Asia with more than 25M+ users, with the biggest markets in Nigeria, Ghana, Indonesia and Vietnam.
He further led the growth of Eskimi DSP, bootstrapping it to become a globally competitive programmatic ad platform with more than 1.5B+ profiled users worldwide. Vytas is also the CEO of ActiveXT, a technology outsourcing company in Singapore that helps extend engineering teams of solid European IT companies and start-ups by hiring talents in its Asia offices.
His contribution to technology and business growth is un-vacillating especially in emerging markets, leveraging digital tools through programmatic advertising.
Giving insights on how to navigate the challenges, Vytautas, said that traditional creative is being used for digital channels; global apps and content are winning over local; creative is going digital for better engagement in a rapidly changing market, and originally, traditional brands are becoming digital-first
He said tt in some cases Africa is leading the revolution, specifically in mobile payments. Some of the digital trends are felt more in the West and European, Asia Pacific and some African countries.
“Nigeria, to be precise, Statista data shows there are about 85.49 million users online who spend up to 4 hours daily. With 169.2 million mobile phone connections, it represents 83% of Nigeria’s 203.6 population as at 2021”.
“Statistics also show that 27 million Nigerians are active social media users which represent 13% of the population. The country’s internet penetration was pegged at 51.44% in 2021 and projected to reach 59.92% by 2026”, he listed during the Summit.
Interestingly, the internet is one of the highest accessed media in Nigeria as the country recorded 30% growth in digital content consumption during the peak of COVID-19 Pandemic.
Then, the worry, with over 50% of Nigerians estimated to be online, how much of the marketing budget is online.
The Eskimi Founder said it is surprising that some brands are still digital laggards, yet to appreciate the fact consumers are moving to the digital space.
“Globally,” he said, “marketing trends show that digital spends have already surpassed the traditional. Global apps account for 70% of all online consumption hence global platforms are dominating time spend and ad inventory.
“Global and Channel changes in 2020-2021 indicates that e-Sports, online video, social media and e-commerce recorded growths while linear TV, broadcast radio, print, out-door advertising and cinemas are on decline on year-on-year activity and advertising spend.
He added that globally, consumers spend 8 hours on digital media per day compared to 5.5r time spent on traditional advertisement as 50% of global media spends are digital already.
He also urged the participants to pay close attention to the gaming industry as the audiences are growing at a rapid pace.
Sharing the impact of mobile gaming, he said that 50% of mobile usage outside of work is devoted to gaming; 33% of the audience plays games multiple times per day and 23 others are playing new games on their smartphones.
Thus, creative is going digital. “Digital-first rich media creative results in 456% better engagement with the consumers”.
Vytautas made reference to Nigeria where rich media ads are topnotch for visibility, engagement and better results. This also delivers the highest CTR.
Another trend that will define the marketing space in 2022 is that advertisers now use hybrid models including in-house media buying. In other words, Advertisers are moving media buying in-house as a 2021 trend indicated in IAB Europe 2021 study.
Vytautas said that IMC practitioners should understand the trends now as most marketers have begun to take more control of their media and digital technology relationships are changing and client needs continue to provide large scale agency realignment.
Amongst others, one of the major motivators of in-housing is that the move helps brands to cut agency creativity and business under one roof.
While digital leads, he said, the legacy channels can transform their platforms too as ‘all screens are going digital’.
He urged the practitioners to develop capacity on content because global content is winning the local.
The Eskimi CEO said the local platforms drive 10-15% of online consumption while global apps account for 70% of all online consumption by dominating time spent and ad inventory.
He recommended that industry players should focus on the right KPIs to drive market growth trajectory. “KPIs should correspond to your goal”, he advised.
Eskimi is a programmatic and data platform with more than 1.5B+ profiled users worldwide. The platform creates unique audience segments for specific industries like telecoms, FMCGs, mobile phone brands, banking and others.
The company builds geolocation and footfall platforms for retail brands. It also provides a combination of platform and managed creative services to achieve up to 15% engagement rates.
Metro Digital Limited, a licenced Indigenous broadcasting organisation, has accused Multichoice, pay television company, of refusing to obey judgements emanating from Courts in Nigeria.
It said the latest of such judgements is the one that was delivered by Justice Chinelo Odili of Rivers State High Court on May 4, 2026 in Suit No. PHC/3943/FHR/2025.
Dr. Paul Osuji, operations manager of Metro Digital, at a press conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State,
said the suit was filed by the organisation and two others against Multichoice and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Osuji stated that Justice Odili has in the judgement described the arrest of a staff member of the company and the carting away of it’s properties and disruption of it’s broadcasting business by the EFCC over a civil dispute of copyrighy as unlawful and violations of the applicants’ rights.
The manager recalled that in October 2025, Multichoice instigated the EFCC to read their office in Port Harcourt, arrested a staff of the company and staff of another company, while the suit was still pending.
“On October 16, 2025, the premises of Metro Digital Limited, a licenced indigenous broadcasting organisation was raided by the Nigerian anti-graft agency, EFCC, instigated by Multichoice Nigeria, purportedly acting on a preservation order made by the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt over the sub licensing of broadcasting content right.
“The preservation order came from a civil dispute already adjudicated by the Court of Appeal No. CA/CS/188/2021 – Multichoice Vs Metro Digital Limited and 20 others, which is a subject of a pending appeal -No. SC/CV/1248/2022 -Multichoice and 20 others before the Supreme Court.
“Instructively, while suit No. PHC/ 3943/ FHR/2025 was still pending, Metro Digital Limited filed an application to set aside the said preservation orders of the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt and presided over by Hon. Justice A.T Mohammed.
“In his ruling delivered on December 10, 2025, set aside the preservation orders and it’s legal execution on Metro Digital Limited. The court also ordered EFCC to return unconditionally all the properties and records of Metro Digital Limited, illegally and unlawfully carted away during the raid but the agency has till today not obeyed those orders of the Court,” he said.
Metro Digital Limited is known for operating SLTV, a direct-to-home satellite television service launched to provide affordable, locally-owned alternatives to international pay TV
A Federal High Court in Lagos has restrained the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) from sanctioning or punishing broadcast stations and presenters over the expression of personal opinions, alleged bullying of guests, or failure to maintain neutrality on air.
NBC
Justice Daniel Osiagor granted the interim injunction following an ex parte application filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE).
The court specifically restrained the NBC, its officers, agents and affiliated persons from enforcing its recently issued “Formal Notice” or imposing sanctions, fines or penalties on broadcasters based on provisions of the 6th Edition of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.
SERAP and NGE had approached the court to challenge what they described as an arbitrary and unlawful move by the commission to punish broadcasters for allegedly expressing personal opinions as facts, bullying or intimidating guests, or failing to maintain neutrality during programmes.
The groups also asked the court to determine whether the provisions of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code relied upon by NBC were inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and Nigeria’s international human rights obligations.
The suit followed an April statement by the NBC in which it raised concerns over what it described as increasing violations of the broadcasting code across news, current affairs and political programmes.
The commission had warned that presenters who expressed personal opinions as facts or bullied guests during live broadcasts would be sanctioned.
However, Justice Osiagor, in his ruling, held that pending the hearing of the substantive matter, the commission must refrain from using the formal notice to threaten, sanction or punish broadcast organisations and on-air personalities under the contested code provisions.
The matter was adjourned until June 1, 2026, for hearing of the motion on notice.
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned Metro Digital Limited before a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt over alleged cybercrime and unlawful interception and rebroadcast of content belonging to Multichoice Nigeria.
Metro Digital
The company was arraigned before Justice A.T. Mohammed on an amended four-count charge bordering on cybercrime-related offences and alleged illegal rebroadcast of protected broadcast content.
According to a statement issued on Wednesday by EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, the prosecution counsel, Steve E. Odiase, informed the court that the matter was scheduled for arraignment.
However, defence counsel, S.A. Somairi (SAN), reportedly attempted to halt the proceedings by drawing the court’s attention to a pending preliminary objection.
The judge, however, declined the request and ordered that the plea be taken in line with Section 478 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, which allows a corporation to enter a plea in writing through its representative.
One of the charges alleged that Metro Digital Limited, alongside its Managing Director, Ifeanyi John Nwafor, and a staff member, Ikenna Kanu, both said to be at large, conspired between 2015 and 2019 to unlawfully intercept and rebroadcast protected broadcast signals in Port Harcourt, Rivers.
Another charge alleged that the defendants intentionally and without authorisation intercepted and rebroadcast broadcast signals and devices, including tiger boxes and dongles, over which Multichoice Nigeria holds exclusive rights in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The anti-graft agency said investigations into the matter began in 2019 after Multichoice petitioned the commission, alleging that the illegal rebroadcast of its content caused significant financial losses.
Metro Digital Limited, through its representative, pleaded not guilty to all four charges.
Following the plea, prosecution counsel prayed the court to fix a date for trial.
Justice Mohammed subsequently adjourned the case until June 29 and June 30, 2026, for continuation of trial.
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