Reps call on DSTV, others to introduce Pay As You Go tariff

The House of Representatives has resolved to set up an ad-hoc committee to interface with Mutichoice Digital Satellite Television (DSTV) and other service providers to introduce the Pay as You Go Tariff (PAYG) plan.

The lawmakers made the resolution on Tuesday while adopting a motion by Unyime Idem (Akwa-Ibom, PDP).

Moving the motion, the lawmaker noted that the National Broadcasting Commission Act empowers the National Broadcasting Commission to regulate the ownership, activities or operations of Radio and Television Stations, as well as Direct Broadcast Satellite Service Providers. He said currently, there are over 10 Direct- To-Home Service Providers operating in Nigeria and rendering paid services.

He also noted that DSTV, one of the leading Direct-To-Home Service Providers in Nigeria, was launched in 1995 and has about 11.9 million subscribers, which is the largest market for its operations.

Mr Idem said he was worried that DSTV and other Direct-To-Home Service Providers have deliberately refused to implement the Pay As You Go Tariff Plan but rather charge users on a fixed monthly tariff plan, unlike what is obtainable outside Nigeria.

“Nigeria constitutes 40 per cent of DSTV’s global market share, yet over 40 per cent of the citizens do not use a greater part of their paid monthly tariff due to engagements that take them from one location to the other on a daily basis, hence they cannot access the services upon expiration, whether or not they used their previous subscriptions until they renew it for another month,” he said.

He said he was aware that DSTV operates a Pay As You Go Tariff Plan in other countries but has chosen to exploit Nigerians through a fixed monthly Tariff Plan.

“The continuous exploitation by Multichoice, owners of DSTV, constitutes economic sabotage against Nigerians as most of them pay for services they do not consume while the company, judging from their average monthly tariff of eight thousand naira, if multiplied by 11.9 million subscribers, makes about 100 billion naira monthly at the expense of its subscribers.”

Part of the yet to be named ad-hoc committee mandate is to investigate the non- implementation of the Pay As You Go (PAYG) tariff plan by broadcast Satellite Service Providers with a view to ensuring strict compliance with the tariff plan and report back within four (4) weeks for further legislative action.

Nigerians have for years grumbled over the continued payment for services not rendered by MultiChoice, the major distance-to-home service provider in Nigeria.

Subscribers have pleaded with the federal government to enact a law to compel MultiChoice to introduce “pay-as-you-view billing’’ system.

Many are of the view that there was a need for such billing system, as it would ensure value for the subscription.

The lawmaker said many of the subscribers complained of paying for services they do not use, adding that after several complaints, MultiChoice did not listen.

MultiChoice has in the past said it could not introduce a pay-as-you-view system because it was not viable.
“The issue of not introducing pay as you view remains. Nothing will change it.

“We are not going to do it. Our contract with our suppliers are month to month basis. The channels do not belong to Multichoice,” the Chief Customer Officer of Multichoice, Martin Mabutho, said in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) last year.