The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has said it is engaging pay television company, MultiChoice Nigeria, for clarity over the increase in subscription rates.
Recall that MultiChoice on Tuesday, announced the increase in DStv and GOtv subscription rates, blaming it on the rising cost of inflation and business operations.
Announcing DStv rates are: Premium (N21,000), Compact + (N14,250), Compact (N9,000), Confam (N5,300), Yanga (N2,950), Padi (N2,150), Business (N2,669), Xtraview + PVR access fee (N2,900)
Those of GOtv as follows: Gotv Max for N4,150, GOtv Jolli for N2,800, GOtv Jinja for N1,900, GOtv Lite for N900.
But the Executive Vice Chairman of FCCPC, Mr Babatunde Irukera while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday said engagement were ongoing to check whether the company implemented a change in terms and conditions in line with the Commission’s mandated steps.
According to him, our orders were broad and it will be important that compliance is prioritised.
“Although we cannot, and did not regulate price except in limited circumstances requiring presidential approval and gazetting.
“As such, our order to MultiChoice did not prevent them from pricing their services in a manner acceptable between them and their subscribers.
“We regulate price gouging. The nature of gouging is post-fact, meaning that when a price movement occurs, we can investigate to determine if it is excessive, exploitative, unrestored or manifestly unjust.
“Such is a very intricate investigation and the fact of the existence of any increase is not the entire evidence.
“There is a method to analyse the increase and other circumstances leading to it.
“As in the case of pharmacies, we are prosecuting for inordinate increases of certain products during early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.
For now, the first check with MultiChoice is whether they implement, or intend to, a material change in terms and conditions (of which price is one) without the steps the Commission has mandated as conditions precedent,’’ he said.