Brands/Products
Group Tackles Multichoice Nigeria Over Price Reduction in South Africa
By Adedapo Adesanya
A Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) known as Save the Consumers has condemned the 21 per cent subscription price hike by MultiChoice Nigeria on its DStv and GOtv services in the country.
Recall that Multichoice noted that its decision to increase the tariff was to save its operations which was heavily impacted by challenges brought about by the weakening Naira.
However, in South Africa, its home country, the reduced its price by about 38 per cent, which Save the Consumers, in a statement signed by its Executive Director, Mr Aliyu Ilias, said it is not happy about.
Mr Ilias said in Abuja on Sunday that the action was not only insensitive and exploitative but also discriminatory coming less than one year after the company’s May 2024 price hike in Nigeria.
The group called for the immediate reversal of the price hike while compensation be paid to subscribers affected by repeated, unjustified price increases and service deficiencies.
He also called for full compliance with the directives of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) which had asked the company to halt any price increase.
“In South Africa, MultiChoice has lowered fees on various products, added new channels, and introduced features that improve the user experience, while acknowledging the financial pressures faced by South African households.
“This double standard, lowering prices at home while increasing them in Nigeria, amounts to economic discrimination and reinforces long-standing concerns about MultiChoice’s exploitative approach toward the Nigerian market.
“It is indefensible for MultiChoice to cite inflation in Nigeria as justification for the hike while offering consumer-friendly pricing in South Africa,” he argued.
Mr Ilias noted, “This reflects a disturbing double standard, with Nigerian consumers continuing to suffer under a near-monopolistic market structure.”
The executive director alleged that while MultiChoice claimed the price hike was necessary to deliver ‘world-class content’, Nigerian subscribers still faced persistent challenges that remained unaddressed in spite repeated complaints.
He also alleged that South African subscribers benefitted from reduced pricing, such as the “Add Movies” bolt-on slashed by 38 per cent to 49 Rand, alongside additional channels and enhanced streaming features.
Mr llias called on the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to take decisive steps to foster genuine competition in the pay-TV sector.
“We call on Nigerian consumers to explore alternative platforms and consider boycotting DStv and GOtv until MultiChoice demonstrates genuine respect for their rights.
“The Nigerian market deserves dignity, not exploitation, no company should be allowed to operate above the law or treat Nigerian consumers as second-class subscribers,” he said.
Recall that MultiChoice Nigeria had in a notice, notified its customers of its new price adjustment which took effect from March 1.
MultiChoice Nigeria had cited inflation and the rising costs of operations in Nigeria for a similar subscription price increase effected in May 2024.
With the hike, DStv Premium subscribers now pay N44,500 instead of N37,000 monthly, while the Compact Plus pay N30,000 monthly . The DStv Compact bouquet increased from N15,700 to N19,000 monthly.
The new price for the Confam package is N1,000 monthly, while Yanga is pegged at N6,000 as against initial price of N5,000, DStv-Padi, now cost N4,400 monthly.
Meanwhile, GOtv customers, who formally paid N3,600 now pay N3,900 monthly, while subscribers of GOtv Plus now pay N5,800 instead of the initial N4,850 monthly.
The move led the FCCPC to direct MultiChoice Nigeria to maintain its initial subscription prices until an ongoing investigation into its proposed price adjustment was concluded.
However, it proceeded with the price adjustment which made the FCCPC to institute legal charges against it and its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mr John Ugbe, for allegedly defying regulatory directives on subscription price adjustments.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Canal+, which now owns MultiChoice, a pay-TV firm, has announced its decision to discontinue the streaming service, Showmax.
The company said the Showmax board has made the decision to discontinue the service in the near future.
“This decision reflects our focus on strengthening our overall digital offering and ensuring long-term sustainability in an increasingly competitive streaming environment.
“Importantly, at the moment, there will be no interruption to your current service. You can continue streaming as usual, and no action is required from you at this time,” it said.
It added that it will share further details in the future, including timelines and any future steps, should they be required.
MultiChoice launched Showmax across Africa 10 years ago in August 2015 to compete with the advent of streamers like Netflix, Apple TV, Amazon’s Prime Video, Disney+ and others, which all became available on the continent and started biting into MultiChoice’s legacy pay-TV subscriber base on DStv and GOtv.
However, it soon faced some challenges and couldn’t hit its target.
In February 2024, MultiChoice, in partnership with Comcast’s NBCUniversal, relaunched Showmax, utilising the technology behind the Peacock streaming service.
The investment, which was pegged at over $300 million, still did not bear the expected fruit, with other streaming giants seeing growth over the years.
With Canal+’s takeover and its aggressive cost-cutting moves, it was no doubt that Showmax got the axe.
Regardless, it said, “Streaming remains central to our strategy. We will continue to invest in premium content, technology innovation and partnerships to deliver the best possible entertainment experience to our customers.”
Canal+ is looking to cut a combined €400 million by 2030, which will affect content.
NBCUniversal has a 30 per cent stake in Showmax as a joint venture. In its last annual results before the Canal+ takeover, MultiChoice revealed that Showmax’s trading losses had worsened by 88 per cent while revenue significantly declined.
According to the company, “The decision to axe Showmax was made by the Showmax board and reflects the continued focus of MultiChoice, a Canal+ company, on financial discipline and investment optimisation, in an increasingly competitive and capital-intensive global streaming environment.”
Since Canal+, as part of its agreement to take over MultiChoice, isn’t allowed to get rid of any staff for a period of three years, MultiChoice won’t let any Showmax staff go but will reassign them to other positions within the broader company.
MultiChoice has already started to quietly rebrand Showmax Originals as Africa Magic, M-Net, kykNET and Mzansi Magic Originals, with original series that will transition to these various DStv linear TV channels on the MultiChoice pay-TV platform.
Showmax’s closure comes two years after Amazon MGM Studios shocked Nigeria and South Africa’s creative community in January 2024 when it announced that it would stop commissioning any new local original content in Africa, and also ended already-existing development deals with a dozen production companies.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Marketing Manager of a leading bleach brand in Nigeria, Hypo Bleach, Mr Adebayo Adeyemo, has condemned the presentation of the brand as a beverage for trends, jokes, or views by influencers and bloggers.
In a statement, Mr Adeyemo said Hypo Bleach was formulated to “remove stains, whiten your white fabric, deodorise and kill 99.9 per cent of germs” and not produced as a “drink.”
“We have observed people seeming to have fun creating and sharing videos and AI-generated images designed to make Hypo look like a beverage.
“Your health and safety are serious business. We want to be unambiguous: those images are fabricated, that framing is false, and anyone encouraging others to consume Hypo, even as a joke, even for views, is putting lives at risk. It is not something to consume for the sake of trends,” the Marketing Manager stated.
He further said, “To every influencer, blogger, and content creator. Your reach is real; so is your responsibility. A trend that ends in ill-health is not a trend worth starting.”
“To every young Nigerian seeing this content, you do not have to prove anything to anyone. Not online. Not offline. Not ever. If someone is pressuring you to try this, that is not a dare. That is harm.
|If you or someone you know is struggling emotionally or feeling pressure they cannot handle, please reach out to someone you trust.
A guardian. A counsellor. A healthcare professional. Asking for help is not a weakness; it is a strength.
“Also, we urge people to prioritise their mental health. Evaluate the quality of your conversations with people. Should you notice inconsistencies in their thinking, encourage them to seek professional help. Depression is real and should be treated with utmost concern. Let’s keep social media fun, but safe,” Mr Adeyemo added.
By Dipo Olowookere
A conference designed to examine how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is fundamentally reshaping crisis communication, institutional response systems, governance frameworks, and reputational risk management is slated to take place on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in Lagos, at 10 am.
The event, planned by a renowned Public Relations (PR) firm, CMC Connect LLP, is themed Crisis Management in the AI Milieu: New Threats, Smarter Responses.
It is an offshoot of the company’s flagship industry initiative, Crisis Management Advocacy Month, scheduled to be held throughout March 2026.
The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Mr Bosun Tijani, is expected to deliver the keynote address, while the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mr Mohammed Idris Malagi, is the Special Guest of Honour.
Earlier in the month, the Vice President for Corporate Communications and CSR at Airtel Africa, Mr Emeka Oparah, will headline a closed-door media workshop convened exclusively for senior media executives in Lagos.
The 2026 edition will also feature strategic collaborations with the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) through its Monthly PR Clinics in both the Lagos and Abuja Chapters, where the Senior Corporate Communications Analyst at CMC Connect LLP, Ms Affiong Edet, will deliver a thematic presentation aligned with this year’s focus.
The initiative will also partner with the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Legal Practice through its weekly webinar series to interrogate the intersection of AI, Crisis Management, and the Law.
“Artificial Intelligence has fundamentally altered the crisis landscape. Crisis Management Advocacy Month 2026 is intentionally designed to convene cross-sector leaders to interrogate emerging risks, strengthen institutional preparedness, and promote smarter, ethical response architectures in an AI-driven environment,” the Project Coordinator, Ms Bright Emmanuel Okon, commented.
Also, the Lead Partner of CMC Connect LLP, Mr Yomi Badejo-Okunsanya, said, “In today’s digital ecosystem, crises evolve at unprecedented speed. Institutions must move beyond reactive communication toward intelligent crisis architecture. Crisis Management Advocacy Month represents our commitment to advancing national and institutional resilience in the age of AI.”
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