Pay TV giants, DSTV, STARTIMES are set to be investigated for price increase and other consumer rights violation. This is according to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) in a press release on Tuesday, September 1, 2020.
The press statement carries a heading as: “FCCPC OPENS ACTIVE INVESTIGATION INTO COMPETITION AND POSSIBLE CONSUMER RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN PAY TV INDUSTRY, pursuant to sections 17(b),(e),(g), (s),(x) (y), 18(3), 59, 61, 62, 69, 70(1)(2), 72, 73, 74, 108, 109, 110 Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA)”
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), says it is acting upon credible information, public announcements by operators, and consumer perception analytics, and has thus opened an investigation into the conduct of dominant Pay TV service providers.
Multichoice DSTV is no doubt the market leader and a major dominant in the Nigeria Pay TV industry, followed closely by STARTIMES.
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) says, “Over the past 24 months, the FCCPC has conducted an investigations, pursued legal action in court, secured an injunction pre-empting price increase, entered specific orders regarding a provider, engaged in periodic surveillance and monitoring, and more recently inquired into a purported tax increase by at least one provider.”
According to the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), the investigation is in order to address the Commission’s concerns and the publicly expressed consumer dissatisfaction with Pay TV services. The scope of the inquiry includes, but is not limited to questions about unfair dealings, unreasonable and manifestly unjust contract terms, and abuse of market power, colourable pricing practices and other otherwise obnoxious or illegal conduct.
“Operators are invited to familiarize themselves with the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission Act (FCCPCA) and statutory clarifications of their obligations to the FCCPC under S.104 in addition to, and or irrespective of any obligations to other regulators”, says the concluding part of the release.
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Babatunde Irukera, the Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) reiterates that the commission will continue to pursue initiatives and efforts that promote and ensure fairness to all.
