Broadcasting
Again, Court Rules Against Multichoice Over Tariff Hike
A judge, Nnamdi Dimgba, in Abuja has rejected an appeal by Multichoice Nigeria against an interim order prohibiting any increase in its DStv or GOtv subscription rates.
Multichoice Nigeria had on August 24 filed an appeal against the order of the Federal High Court, Abuja stopping it from increasing the subscription rates to its cable television services. The order was given on August 20.
The restraining order was issued in respect of Suit No FHC/ABJ/CS/894/18 brought before the court by the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) in the light of the public outcry raised.
In his order, Mr Dimgba said the interim injunction restrains Multichoice Nigeria or its agents and representatives from “continuing the implementation of any increase in subscription rates or price review policy imposing increased charges and costs on the consumers pending the determination of the motion on notice.”
Besides, the court also restrained DSTV from “further carrying on or continuing any conduct or activity which interferes with or has effect of circumventing the outcome of ongoing investigations by the CPC into the company’s compliance or non-compliance with the February 16, 2016 order pending the determination of the motion on notice”.
When the appeal was made, the CPC explained that the order stopping implementation of the new tariffs will subsist till the appeal has been heard and ruling given by the court.
This means that the subscription tariffs for Dstv and Gotv ought not to have increased but consumers have been paying the increased tariffs since August.
Under the new price regime, the company said the Premium package subscribers pay about 7.5 per cent more (about N15,800) from about N14,700 every month.
Also, their Compact Plus customers still pay N10,650, from N9,900; Compact bouquets, N6,800, from N6,300, while the family package was increased from N3,800 to N4,000, with Access from N1,900 to N2,000
On Monday, during the court hearing, the judge also refused the application by MultiChoice to adjourn the matter indefinitely.
When asked of the measures taken to ensure Multichoice’s compliance, Babatunde Irukera, director general, CPC, said CPC still holds the position that consumers should be paying the old tariff.
“However, the council’s understanding is that Multichoice is not complying with that order of court so that’s why it was important for the court to agree to clarify the situation,” he said.
Broadcasting Organization of Nigeria (BON) has established six committees to help strengthen and modernize the country’s broadcasting industry.
The committees will focus on content creation, skills development, digital transformation, sustainability, policy and commercial opportunities
The initiative aims to support industry growth and improve collaboration between broadcasters, regulators and media experts
The official launch recently, was led by Tony Akiotu, president, BON and attended by media professionals, program directors, former journalists and heads of specialized media organizations.
The event brought together several prominent figures in Nigeria’s media industry, including veteran broadcaster and trainer Bimbo Oloyede, Tony Uyah of M4S TV, Kingsley Uranta of Channels Television, Ismael Sani of Platinum TV and Ibrahim Shehu of Trust TV.
Together, they are expected to help drive innovation and support the growth of Nigeria’s broadcasting sector.
According to Akiotu, the committees are intended both to help shape industry policy and to provide a forum for dialogue between BON and broadcasting experts.
Akiotu said the ad hoc committees were intended to strengthen BON’s work and ensure that the umbrella body for Nigeria’s broadcasters played a more direct and meaningful role in developing the country’s broadcasting sector.
The six committees reflect the sector’s main priorities. The first focuses on collaboration and innovation to promote content creation.
The second is dedicated to training and talent development, while the third focuses on industry sustainability by improving the sector’s long-term financial viability.
A fourth committee will focus on digital transformation and work with the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) on regulatory issues.
The remaining two committees will oversee public policy advocacy and the development of sports and commercial rights to help broadcasters increase revenue and attract more investment. Together, the committees are expected to guide BON’s efforts to modernize and strengthen Nigeria’s broadcasting industry.
The committees, chaired by members of BON’s General Assembly and supported by the organization’s Secretariat, have an initial 12-month mandate that may be renewed if necessary.
They are required to submit a progress report within three months and implement approved recommendations within the following six months.
The arrangement is intended to ensure close oversight and the timely implementation of their work.
Akiotu also reminded committee members that Nigeria pioneered television broadcasting in Africa and urged them to carry out their work with greater effectiveness and efficiency.
Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) says it is investigating about 34 tertiary institutions over allegations that they failed to refund students whose tuition fees were paid twice under the Federal Government’s student loan scheme.
The Managing Director of NELFUND, Mr Akintunde Sawyerr, disclosed this during an interview on Arise Television.
Sawyerr said the agency had deployed a five-member investigative team, including operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and internal auditors, to examine the allegations.
According to him, the investigation was prompted by numerous complaints received from affected students.
“As of right now, there are 34 institutions that we are looking at closely with respect to this issue,” he said.
Sawyerr explained that the double payment issue arose because President Bola Tinubu directed that the student loan scheme commence in the middle of an academic session instead of at the beginning.
He said the decision compelled many students to pay their tuition fees to meet registration deadlines while awaiting approval of their loan applications.
“What happened is that a lot of schools got double payment; some from the students and some from us,” he said.
“The refund process is entirely out of our hands. It is the recipient of the double payments that is obliged to make refunds to the students.”
The NELFUND boss noted that many students had borrowed money from family members, friends and other sources to pay their tuition with the expectation of receiving refunds once the loans were disbursed.
He said while some institutions had promptly refunded affected students, others had failed to do so.
“Some have been very good at this. Others haven’t been so good at it,” Sawyerr said.
“I reserve judgement on the intentionality around it because, for some of them, they just didn’t have the process to make refunds.”
Sawyerr disclosed that NELFUND was exploring a tokenised payment system that would enable students to authorise tuition payments directly to their institutions, thereby reducing the likelihood of duplicate payments.
He said the agency deliberately chose not to disburse tuition loans directly to students to minimise the risk of fund diversion.
“Paying the funds to the students could really lead to the temptation for them to divert and do other things,” he said.
The managing director, however, acknowledged that NELFUND lacked the statutory powers to compel institutions to refund students or prosecute officials found culpable.
He added that many frustrated students had submitted complaints not only to NELFUND but also to anti-corruption agencies, including the EFCC and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
Sawyerr also expressed concern over increases in tuition fees by some institutions following the introduction of the student loan scheme.
He said NELFUND had declined to pay institutions that increased their tuition fees beyond acceptable levels.
“Some schools, because they get paid easily, started to put up their fees. We refused, point blank, to pay institutions who had hiked their fees beyond a certain level,” he said.
He reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to investigating every reported irregularity and strengthening the implementation of the student loan programme through continuous monitoring and internal reviews.
Xora Finance, Fintech Firm Refuses to Hire Nigerians over Alleged Dishonesty
FG Secures Fresh $208.3m World Bank Loan for Cash Transfer
How Ponzi Scheme Victims can Seek Legal Remedies — Lawyers
SERAP Sues INEC over Alleged N800Bn 2027 Tinubu Campaign Fund
Kaigama,Catholic Archbishop of Abuja Warns against Misuse of AI
Nigeria Launches FreeTV Nationwide
NASENI Moves to Digitize CCB’s 5m Assets Declaration and Operations
NRC, Ponzi Scheme Collapses Resulting Loss of Billions of Naira
Lebara Nigeria Launches Lebara Play, Africa’s First Telecom-Owned Micro-Drama Platform
CANAL+ Partners Samsung to Pre-Load DStv Stream on New Samsung TVs In Nigeria, Other African Countries
Telecom2 days agoDStv, GOtv Owner MultiChoice Officially Joins Canal+ Group
News2 days agoPolice Busts Syndicate Who Allegedly Stole N3Bn from Financial Institution
Telecom2 days agoMTN Accelerates Network Expansion to Meet Surging Telecom Demand
E-Financial2 days agoSEC Unveils Plans to Enforce Mandatory ESG Reporting for Large Firms Next Year
Telecom2 days agoAirtel Africa to Connect 5,000 Schools to Free Internet by 2027
Broadcasting2 days agoFrom Scarcity to Scale: What Africa Can Learn from India’s Agricultural Transformation
E-Business2 days agoTeKnowledge, Equinix Partner to Advance Nigerian Digital Infrastructure
General News2 days agoNSIB Faults Runway Identification, Reveals Cockpit Disagreement in Asaba Jet Incident