Tribunal fines MultiChoice N150M, ordered them to give one month free subscription

Tribunal fines Multichoice Nigeria N150mn for disobeying orders restraining DSTV, GOTV price hike

The Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal has fined Multichoice Nigeria N150 million for disputing the court’s jurisdiction and ordered the company to provide Nigerians with a one-month free subscription to DStv and GOtv.

The tribunal had previously stopped Multichoice from raising subscription fees without proper notice, given a lawsuit by Festus Onifade who claimed the 8-day notice given for the price increase was inadequate.

Multichoice’s lawyer contended that previous rulings had settled price regulation issues, while Mr 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 fixed July 3 for a hearing of the substantive suit of the Plaintiff.

The tribunal also ordered Multichoice to give subscribers a month free subscription on all their packages.