FCCPC sues multichoice over DSTV, Gotv Price Hike

Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) submitted legal procedures against Multichoice Nigeria Limited and his executive director, John Ugbe.

The action in court was taken against the company because it had violated the regulatory directives, obstructing a continuous investigation and the employment under the conditions that contravenes the federal competition and the protection of consumers (FCCPA) 2018.

The Commission revealed this on Wednesday in a press release signed by the corporate business director at FCCPC, Ijagwu.

The process, submitted to the High Federal Court, the Lagos Judicial Division, follows the Multichoice Nigeria decision to continue with an increase in prices for its DSTV and Gotv subscription services, despite a regulatory order to maintain existing rates.

FCCPC issued a Directive on February 27, training the company to suspend the prices proposed to be waiting for an investigation into compliance with the consumer protection regulations.

The paid television company announced that, from March 1, the subscription costs for its DSTV and GOTV packages will increase, invoking increased operational expenses.

According to the proposed prices, the premium DSTV subscribers would see that their taxes increase on N44,500, while the compact+ and compact plans would cost N30,000 and N19,000 respectively. Similarly, the GOTV soup plus package was set on N16,800.

The Commission is pursuing legal actions regarding three charges under FCCPA 2018. The accusations include obstructing the will of a regulatory investigation by implementing the increase of prices contrary to the directives (section 33 (4)), preventing an ongoing investigation, ignoring the instructions to suspend (section 110) Without objections (section 159 (2), the punishment 159 (4) (a) and (b)).

The Commission has accused multichoice of deliberately undermined the supervision of regulations and ignored the proper process. By implementing the increase in prices before a scheduled investigation hearing for March 6, it is assumed that the company acted with bad faith, establishing a precedent that could erode consumer rights and market correctness.

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“The Commission considers his actions to multichoice as a deliberate and calculated attempt to undermine the regulatory authority, to disturb the correctness of the market and to refuse the Nigerian consumers the protection offered according to the law. By ignoring the FCCPC Directive and implementing prices increase before appearing in front of the commission’s investigation on March 6, 2025, Multichoice has not only achieved the regulatory processes, but also demonstrated a model that undermines the rights of consumers and the correct competition, ”the statement said.

Beyond the trial, FCCPC also considers additional application measures, including sanctions and regulatory interventions, to ensure compliance.

The Commission has reaffirmed its commitment to protect consumers against exploiting business practices and to ensure that players in the dominant market respect the correct principles of competition.