Court Compensates Nigerians, Orders Multichoice To Give One Month Free Subscription Over Tariff Hike
The prominent Pay-TV operator, Multichoice Nigeria, owners of DSTV, GOTV, have been fined by the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal.
Ordered a ₦150 million fine for disputing the court’s jurisdiction, the court led by a three-man panel, Thomas Okusu gave the verdict on Friday saying the company should provide Nigerians with a one-month free subscription to its subscribers.
The tribunal had previously blocked Multichoice from raising subscription fees without proper notice, based on a lawsuit by Barrister Festus Onifade who claimed the eight-day notice given for the price increase was inadequate.
Onifade had sued DSTV, accusing the Pay-TV of unjustly increasing subscription fees without one month’s notice to customers and leveraging on it to seek interim orders.
Counsel for Multichoice had contended that previous rulings had settled price regulation issues, while Onifade focused on the inadequate notice rather than the price hike itself, prompting the tribunal to affirm its jurisdiction and rule against Multichoice.
The court subsequently fixed July 3 for a hearing of the plaintiff’s substantive suit.
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