Broadcasting
FG Pays Outstanding Debts on Digital Switch Over project – Minister
Federal Government has paid all debts owed to service providers under the Digital Switch Over (DSO) project, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, minister of Information and Culture, said on Tuesday in Abuja.
He made the declaration at the 26th edition of President Muhammadu Buhari’s Administration Scorecard Series (2015-2023).
The DSO is the globally-endorsed process of transition from analogue to digital broadcasting.
Presenting the scorecard of the ministry, Mohammed recalled that after Nigeria had missed the deadline for the DSO a number of times, the Buhari administration re-launched the whole digital transition process.
He said the re-launch resulted in the pilot launch of the DSO in Jos in April 2016 and subsequent roll out in Abuja, Kwara, Kaduna, Enugu, Osun, Lagos and Kano states.
The minister also recalled that following a stall in the DSO process the Federal Government resolved that for the transition to be sustainable it should be a private-sector-driven exercise.
According to him, the DSO must be self-sustaining and there will be no more subsidies either on Set Top Boxes or on signal carriage.
He said the ministry, therefore, pledged to work with the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning and the Federal Executive Council to secure funds to pay the outstanding debts
The minister said also that reforms embarked upon at the National Broadcasting Commission were in line with government’s drive to provide job opportunities for Nigerians.
He said amendments made to the National Broadcast Code were aimed at encouraging the development and growth of local content in the broadcast industry.
Mohammed stressed that the Buhari administration had succeeded in making ground-breaking reforms in Nigeria’s advertising and marketing communications industry.
Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) has announced the postponement of its maiden annual Public Relations, Reputation, Ideas, Concepts and Excellence (PRICE) Awards and Prizes to January 25, 2026.
NIPR
The event, earlier scheduled for December 7, 2025, was deferred to accommodate stakeholders whose observance of Christmas festivities had commenced earlier than expected.
Chairman of the Organising Committee, Mr. Israel Opayemi, urged stakeholders to note the new date and prepare to participate in the ceremony.
He said the awards would motivate professionals, practitioners and scholars, while enhancing Nigeria’s global competitiveness in the public relations ecosystem and strengthening brand equity for all stakeholders.
Opayemi reaffirmed the Committee’s commitment to delivering a best-in-class award administration and ceremony, describing the PRICE Awards as a credible and enduring platform to identify, celebrate and elevate outstanding individuals, campaigns and organisations shaping the public relations landscape across sectors.
The development of the PRICE Awards peaked in September 2025 when the NIPR President and Chairman, Council, Dr. Ike Neliaku, inaugurated a 12-man committee to organise the maiden edition. The inauguration followed the Council’s adoption of the report of a technical team tasked with establishing the awards.
Netflix has announced a landmark agreement to acquire Warner Bros. and HBO Max in a transaction valued at $82.7 billion, a move analysts say will reshape the global entertainment industry.
Netflix
The deal, which includes Warner Bros.’ film and television studios, HBO, HBO Max, and Warner Bros. Games, was unanimously approved by the boards of both companies. Under the terms, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shareholders will receive $23.25 in cash and $4.50 in Netflix shares for each WBD share.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos described the acquisition as “a defining moment” for the streaming giant, noting that the company intends to maintain Warner Bros.’ current operations while expanding its production capacity.
“By combining Warner Bros.’ incredible library of shows and movies with Netflix’s culture-defining titles, we can give audiences more of what they love and help define the next century of storytelling,” Sarandos said.
The transaction is expected to close within 12 to 18 months, following the planned spin-off of WBD’s TV networks division, Discovery Global, in 2026. Netflix projects annual cost savings of $2–3 billion by the third year after completion and expects the deal to be accretive to earnings per share by year two.
Industry groups, including the Directors Guild of America and Cinema United, have raised concerns about the impact on movie theaters, while regulators are expected to scrutinize the deal over antitrust issues. Netflix has pledged to continue supporting theatrical releases, with Warner Bros.’ cinema commitments running through 2029.
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav hailed the agreement, saying it “combines two of the greatest storytelling companies in the world to bring to even more people the entertainment they love.”
Observers note that the acquisition comes 15 years after former Time Warner chief Jeff Bewkes dismissed Netflix as “the Albanian army,” underscoring the dramatic shift in the entertainment landscape.
A major shake‑up rocks viewers and subscribers of DSTV/GOTV as many channels are set to shut down and be removed on January 1, 2026.
The trigger for the upcoming shut‑down is a breakdown in negotiations between the owners of multiple global channels and the pay‑TV operator.
As of December 2025, the deal between Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and DStv/GOtv has expired and the two parties have not reached a renewal agreement.
Without a new carriage/distribution agreement, the channels belonging to WBD risk being pulled off the DStv/GOtv line‑up.
This is the most significant content cutback the service has seen in years.
The affected channels are:
Discovery Channel
TLC
Cartoonito
Cartoon Network
CNN International
Food Network
The Travel Channel
TNT
Investigation Discovery
Real Time
HGTV
Discovery Family
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