Broadcasting
CFC’s Nollywood Conference on Best Practices Garners Support
Sandra Obiago, ED, Communicating for Change (CFC) has disclosed that the Nollywood Conference hosted by CFC, the UN and the World Intellectual Property Organization (Wipo); witnessed wide support from various quarters of the economy.
This revelation was made last week at a media briefing to communicate the outcomes of the conference which had both local and international stakeholders in the entertainment industry in attendance.
According to Obiago, “The conference focused on how the private and public sectors could boost Nigeria’s economy through copyright protection and structured investment in the entertainment industry. The sessions also focused on content development and how Nigeria’s internationally celebrated musicians, writers, performing artists, photographers, designers and other creative industry practitioners could contribute to making Nigerian film the best in the world.”
In her opening address to the conference, she called for the government to recognize Nigeria’s creative industries and Nollywood in particular, as the engine to power Nigeria’s economy; even as she stated at the post-conference media briefing, that there is the need to collect the economic data of the creative industry’s contribution to the national GDP.
“If we want to meet the Millennium Development Goals by eradicating poverty, getting girls into schools, cutting down our horrifically high maternal mortality rates and create lasting wealth, then we must build a strong legal and financial framework within which our creativity can be expressed, protected, and used to create jobs, sustain livelihoods, and showcase our rich culture,” she tasked stakeholders at the conference. “We need to put Nigeria on the front burner of international cultural and artistic excellence by using film to showcase the impressive spectrum of our awesome Nigerian art and creativity.”
Obiago also emphasized the need for government to help in boosting the Nigerian creative industry through subsidies, tax incentives, and signing of co-production treaties with countries with well developed film industries; noting that the South African film industry witnessed a boost within a short time, due to co-production treaties with the U.S, Canada, the U.K.
In the same vein, Donna Ghelfi, senior programme officer with the Creative Industries Division of Wipo, had confirmed the UN agency’s commitment to working with Nigerians to collect and track data showing the huge but presently invisible injection of capital from Nigeria’s creative industries in to the country’s economy.
She shared data from other economies, such as the US, where the creative industry provides more than 11% of GDP, and almost 9% of employment, as compared to the Philippines and Mexico, where the creative industry make up over 11% of employment. On average in developed, developing and transition countries, the creative industry makes up over 5% of employment and 5.4% of GDP. Of that 5.4%, press and literature contribute an average 44% to the creative industry, while radio & television come second with 12%, software comes third with 10%, followed by advertising with 9%.
Efere Ozako, managing partner of Efere Ozako & Associates, speaking on the issue of piracy and infringement on intellectual property rights at the post conference briefing, harped on the need for intellectual property rights owners to stand up to the menace; acknowledge the importance of their works and report cases of infringement to the appropriate authorities for proper prosecution.
He called on producers of music and film contents to make their productions have a lasting quality, adding that proper budgeting be made for them in order to turn out works that are world-class.
The Nollywood Conference closed with such recommendations for developing the Nigerian creative industry which includes that the finance, legal sector and insurance sectors need to agree and come up with a mechanism for the valuation of creative property assets, so that they can then be used as collateral; there needs to be a proper valuation of creative products and proper pricing of creative products; creators need to be clear about diverse types of ownership within productions, take time and set aside resources to properly document and complete the legal paperwork in order to ensure that the products can be internationally exhibited and sold.
Other recommendations are that the role of the film industry associations be strengthened – guilds, associations of directors, producers, screenwriters, performers, etc. should do more in defending the rights of their stakeholders in the industry; to tackle piracy, film makers must better understand their rights; consumers must be educated through a strong awareness raising campaign about the importance and benefits of buying genuine products, how to identify genuine creative products and how to help protect the creators of these works; the government should support the creative industries through subsidies, tax incentives, co-production treaties with other countries, law enforcement, and through legislation; Nollywood filmmakers should work closely with visual and performing artists, as well as with Nigeria’s top musicians, writers, designers, architects, and creators of creative content, to improve the quality of our films; among others.
Bright Echefu, chief executive officer, Telecom Satellites Limited (TStv), and three co‑defendants appeared before the Federal High Court in Abuja yesterday on an amended twelve‑count indictment brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The charges allege money laundering, tax evasion, and investment fraud involving approximately ₦1 billion and $1.3 million.
Bright Echefu, chief executive officer, TStv
In addition to Echefu, the defendants are TStv Executive Director, Felix Igboanuga, Telecom Satellites Limited itself, and Briechberg Investment Ltd.
According to the April 5, 2025, amended charge sheet the EFCC accuses the quartet of defrauding Mr. Tanimu Turaki, Managing Director of Kalsiyam Global and former Minister of Special Duties, alongside BYI General Limited, out of a combined investment of ₦1 billion and $1.3 million. The commission has also included a ₦66 million alleged tax default.
The revised indictment lists:
Count 2: ₦33,909,542.47 in unremitted Company Income Tax
Count 3: ₦13,519,382.00 in unremitted VAT
Count 4: ₦19,488,860.00 in unremitted PAYE
Counts 5–12: Various fraud‑related transactions, including ₦380 million from Kalsiyam Farm, ₦400 million from BYI General Ltd and $1.35 million in loans secured under false pretences.
All defendants pleaded not guilty once again. At the hearing before Justice Mohammed Umar, Echefu’s lead counsel, Senior Advocate Eyitayo Fatogun, informed the court of ongoing settlement discussions with the complainants.
“There are moves to settle this matter and there was a meeting on Saturday between myself and the Nominal Complainant as it is about investment,” Fatogun stated.
“The Defendants have paid some money and I was thinking that the matter be adjourned for report of settlement.”
EFCC counsel A.S. Tomwell confirmed receipt of those payments but emphasized the necessity of entering a plea before considering any adjournment. The court thus ordered the formal reading of the charges and adjourned the trial to October 15, 2025.
The government of Ghana has ordered MultiChoice Ghana to reduce DSTV subscription costs by 30%, noting the significant appreciation of local currency and growing dissatisfaction with current rates.
This comes as Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has fined MultiChoice Nigeria ₦766,242,500 for breaching the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA).
According to Mr Babatunde Bamigboye, head Legal, Enforcement & Regulations, NDPC, the investigation, which commenced in the second quarter of 2024, was triggered by suspected breach of privacy rights of Multichoice subscribers and illegal cross-border transfer of personal data of Nigerians.
MultiChoice, which operates across Africa, continues to lose revenue and subscribers.
Ghana’s minister of communication, digital technology, and innovation, Samuel Nartey George, made the call last week during a meeting with a DSTV team led by Dr. Keabetswe Modimoeng, group executive for regulatory and corporate affairs.
According to a ministry statement, George said the government’s responsibility is to respond to Ghanaians’ concerns over high DSTV pricing and outdated content offers.
The Minister pointed out that despite a 30% increase in the cedi’s value over the past five months; DSTV prices have not reflected the positive economic trend.
The statement went on to say the minister is therefore calling for a 30% price reduction to match the cedi’s appreciation and to pass on economic benefits to consumers.
According to the statement, while MultiChoice has implemented promotional packages, people prefer a direct price reduction over temporary discounts.
George said feedback from public engagements revealed that many users are dissatisfied with DSTV’s content, describing it as outdated save for Premier League football. They also believe that the current cost is not justified.
”To address the concerns, he said MultiChoice Ghana has until July 21 to formally respond to the government’s request. The Minister expects a concrete proposal by this date, allowing time for further engagement before the end of July,” the statement said.
In response, Dr. Modimoeng acknowledged the government’s concerns and expressed gratitude for the opportunity to dialogue.
The MultiChoice team reacted positively to the minister’s request and committed to provide input by July 21st. They emphasised the need of balancing public interest and business sustainability.
This is the continent’s latest pricing conundrum for the pan-African pay-TV business, following fee disputes with Nigerian and Malawian authorities.
In Ghana, the demand for price cuts comes as MultiChoice is under pressure, having lost revenue and subscribers in the financial year that ended March 31, 2025. Last month, the company announced its financial year-end results.
In a statement to shareholders last month on the Stock Exchange News Service, the company said the past two financial years have been a period of significant financial disruption for economies, corporates and consumers across Sub-Saharan Africa due to challenging macro-economic factors.
Combined with the impact of structural industry changes in video entertainment, such as the rise of piracy, streaming services and social media, this has materially affected the overall performance of the MultiChoice Group, it noted.
Over this period, MultiChoice said the group lost 2.8 million active linear subscribers and had to absorb a R10.2 billion negative impact on its top line due to local currency depreciation against the US dollar.
For the year, the company reveals that linear subscribers were down 1.2 million, or 8% year-on-year, to 14.5 million active subscribers, with the loss evenly split between South African (600 000) and rest of Africa (600 000).
Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has fined MultiChoice Nigeria ₦766,242,500 for breaching the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA).
NDPC is a public institution that processes data in furtherance of its mandate as Nigeria’s data protection authority and relies on recognised lawful bases for data processing, such as consent, legal obligation, and contract.
The fine was contained in a statement signed by Mr Babatunde Bamigboye, head Legal, Enforcement & Regulations, NDPC.
According to him, the investigation, which commenced in the second quarter of 2024, was triggered by suspected breach of privacy rights of Multichoice subscribers and illegal cross-border transfer of personal data of Nigerians.
“The NDPC found, among others, that Multichoice violated the data privacy rights of subscribers and their friends who are not necessarily subscribers.
The Commission also found that Multichoice carries out illegal cross-border transfer of personal data relating to data subjects in Nigeria.
The depth of data processing by Multichoice is patently intrusive, unfair, unnecessary, and disproportionate.
This is a grave affront to fundamental right to privacy as enshrined in Section 37 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
In line with its standard remediation procedure, the Commission directed Multichoice to carry out appropriate remedial measures.
However, the Commission found the measures undertaken by Multichoice in this regard unsatisfactory.
For want of cooperation, the Commission has directed Multichoice to pay ₦766,242,500 for violating the Nigerian Data Protection Act.
“Nigeria is entitled to protect her citizens and data sovereignty under both international and extant municipal laws, as these have far-reaching implication for rule of law, national security, and economic growth.” the statement said.
Babatunde also revealed that, Vincent Olatunji, national Commissioner, NDPC, has directed that all outlets through which Multichoice is collecting personal data of Nigerian citizens should be investigated for non-compliance.
He added that any outlet that processes personal data in violation of the NDP Act is liable to penalty under the Act.
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