The The stripping of exclusivity right of DSTV by the Nigeria Government is a great relieve to many Nigerian. I believe this is a great and commendable move by the government to protect our local industries which I hope will not be restricted only to broadcasting industry but all industries.

The government stole those rights from DStV. It's an abuse of government.

Is it ok to rob the rich to give to the poor? What if you are the one who is rich through hard work? Can I rob you of the money you want to use to send your children to private universities and use it to pay federal lecturers?

DSTV also took undue advantage of its position to acquire rights for the entire continent. If our government was 'asleep' in the past, they are wide awake now and the monopoly has to stop.

Who determines whether an advantage is "undue" or not? Let's call a thief a thief.

This is like saying someone took "undue advantage" of low prices in the market to buy enough foodstuff to last for a month. I'll be like, "isn't that what people are supposed to do?"

This is like saying an inventor "took undue advantage" of his brain to obtain a patent to the detriment of others who were not sharp enough to come up with the same idea before it was patented.

What people don't understand is that once you invite the government to deal with your competitor today, tommorrow the government will be dealing with you. Politics will win and business will lose.

DSTV's competitors should have used their funds to take their own "undue advantage" of made in Nigeria sports programmes, reality shows, Nigerian movies, etc and show them to subscribers.

Business is a game that's best played without the government's "assistance". When you win it with your own intelligence, you feel more fulfilled and you get to keep your profits instead of using them to settle politicians.

We never had competition in that industry. When government decided to liberalise it, the new entrants discovered that they had no chance of airing the favourite channels in Nigeria due to the exclusive rights obtained by DSTV. What right does DSTV, a South African company have to obtain rights for independent countries such as Nigeria?

Nigeria made a mistake in the past by allowing such business venture to thrive without regulation but it has to stop! A Company cannot dominate the industry and determine prices the way they have been carrying on.

I read in the papers sometime ago that even the exclusive right to Sky Sports will be reviewed when the contract expires in 2007.

We never had competition in that industry.

To a businessman, this is fallacious. DSTV competes with local TV stations. For example, we activated our DSTV subscription this month, and yet yesterday evening we were all watching Gulder Ultimate Search. That shows that local content can rival foreign content in popularity if properly created and promoted!

If DSTV has exclusivity rights for broadcasting of most foreign programmes, I would get exclusivity rights for broadcasting of local programmes, and then promote those programmes until they are more popular than the foreign ones.

Sooner or later, DSTV will want to show those local programmes I have exclusivity rights to, and I will tell them that I can let them broadcast the local programmes I have rights to if they let me broadcast their foreign ones.

The local cable operators just want to copy DSTV's programmes instead of thinking of their own. Shame.

What right does DSTV, a South African company have to obtain rights for independent countries such as Nigeria?

What right does Nairaland, a Nigerian site, have to obtain website hosting space in independent countries like USA? What right do computer village vendors, Nigerians, have to purchase rights to computers from independent Asian countries like Taiwan and China? Can you see the problem with that line of thinking?

When you buy something, it becomes yours regardless of which country you comes from. When Multichoice bought exclusive broadcasting rights to certain programme, they got the right to own those rights.

my question goes as follows, does multichoice have exclusive rights in their home country of south africa?

otokx:

my question goes as follows, does multichoice have exclusive rights in their home country of south africa?

I think its not about whether it has exclusive rights, in its own home country or it doesn't, what matters right now is that, the company has it, it has paid for it, and based on fairness and proper law practice, it deserves to keep what is agreed in the agreement signed. Or you do not agree ?

What did the Government steal. can u guys explain more.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/articles/2002/sports/september06/01092006/sp501092006.html

http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/opinion/editorial/2006/aug/21/editorial-21-08-2006-001.htm

http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=57612 <<shows what the market can do>>

I dont know why we cant think staright for once in this country. What right does DSTV have to buy right on behalf of Nigeria. All over the world, country protect their interest, i dont see why it cannot happen in Nigeria, if it is South Africa, they will do the same.

Somewhere in South Africa, a Multichoice executive is saying, "you see, we should have settled those boys. Next time, we won't make that mistake. We will appoint our own stooges in the NBC to regulate in our favor."

@Seun
Hahaha very true,

Its not about NCC, its about our sovereignty as a nation and the danger of external monopoly.

This supposed external monopoly, are unfortunately those that come to our rescue first, when there is the chance to invest on our infrastructure.

This are the same organizations that could be our key to a achieving the status of a developed country.

How many Nigerian corporate investors are readily ready all the time? The Nepa privatisation effort says it all. But look at the telecos industry, and you would have your answer in regards to external companies.

What Nigerians do is litterally, pick opportunities after this supposed external monopoly burn their money in our economy and risk all they have, are come out successful. I do think, we need to re-analyse how we threat foreign investors.

Our current attitudes, might backfire one day. Why should a foreign investor invest in a country that woul terminate agreements as it suits them anytime? Yet we complain that foreigners do not want to invest in Nigeria, honestly I do not blame those that choose not too.

Seun,
Multichoice obtained exclusive rights to air programmes such as The English Premier League, CNN, Discovery Channel and a host of others. meaning that for any other station to air these programmes, it must pay Multichoice which owns DSTV. But with the government stripping them of this right (at least in Nigeria) other local cable stations like FSTV and TREND TV can air these programmes without having to go through DSTV, a foreign company.

It's like giving NTA the exclusive rights to air programmes in the UK and asking SKY to buy from NTA.

kazey,
Multichoice does not have an agreement with Nigeria but with the stations it broadcasts, to be the only one broadcasting these stations in Africa. What Nigeria did was simply to remove herself from that "Africa". which DSTV controls.

I support NBC on this one. They have enjoyed unfair advantage for far too long.

I do not agree with your point of view seun.

It is the duty of the Government to serve the interest of Nigerians who want to go into this business. If i am correct when they started. Nigerian busniness where not really interested in it so it was ok for DSTV to enjoy their monopoly. but when at the moment a lot of indeginous companies are frustrated out of the market due to unfair monopoly. the governement must do something

Afterall it is you the same people that would say the government is not doing anything in the country's interest. now they have done something and yet we still compalin. Na wa for Nigerians sef!

Put the blame on the multichoice. They are too exploitative in their services to broadcast the EPL. Because they know everyone loves to watch EPL, they bundle the channel with its full bouquet, so much so that you can't watch the EPL unless you subscribe for the full bouquet. In other Satelllite companies like Showtime and ART, you are allow to choose your channel. But because DSTV are too exploitative, they made it so expensive and exploitative for anyone to watch EPL from their channels. Now that the monopoly is broken, the cost of watching EPL will be so less expensive that DSTV will be force to reduce their prices as well as go as far as unbundling their bouquet to accommodate watching Super sport 3 as a separate bouquet.

Agreed that Seun is right with his above analysis, but sometimes, it is always counter productive to be too exploitative when enjoying a monopoly, the result is what is happening to DSTV now, it has happen to Nitel in the past now is the turn of DSTV. Imagine DSTV exploiting us in this country so much so that, you cannot watch World cup matches with their 4,300 Naira bouquet. It is too exploitative. Like i always said, this is a welcome development. Last week Nigerian government had concluded agreement with officials of EPL and they have agreed to even allow local TV stations to show 2 premier league matches live for free every week. So the days of DSTV exclusivity rights are numbered.

And lest i forget, it is not NCC that are regulatory body for broadcasting it is NBC - Nigeria Broadcasting Corporation.

nenye78:

kazey,
Multichoice does not have an agreement with Nigeria but with the stations it broadcasts, to be the only one broadcasting these stations in Africa. What Nigeria did was simply to remove herself from that "Africa". which DSTV controls.

Well then so how does the government play a role in breach of contract as announced?

candylips:

I support NCC on this one. They have enjoyed unfair advantage for far too long.

Why is it unfair? The word monopoly in business exist for a reason, and even if its at the advantage to the first comer, the other interest new entrants should know what they are up against before they get involved.

candylips:

. If i am correct when they started. Nigerian busniness where not really interested in it so it was ok for DSTV to enjoy their monopoly.

Exactly and why now and what makes it unfair?

@twinstaiye
I do not think Nigerians are complaining about the cost of dstv subscription, considering the fact that its a luxury not a necessity.

ok maybe it is not unfair but i think what the government was trying to do was to provide a level playing field for everyone.

i believe this action is long overdue. NBC's action is right. Multichoice never gave nigerians much choice, they kindof forced things down our throats. Serves them right.

Some people might argue till kingdom come that OBJ is the worst thing that ever happened to Nigeria, but the truth is that at least for once, we are seeing behind the curtains of the big men. Despite all Nigeria did for struggles in S/Africa and W/Africa all we get in return is name calling and maiming of Nigerians. Nigeria is too big for some S/A companies to monopolize. Can anybody remember what MTN said about PSB, they said it isn't possible, but Glo made it happened. Unlike the era of the khaki boys, (we still dey dem era only that they wear agbada now) Nigerians can raise their voices now, what stops guys on Nairaland from setting up their own cable services, my 2 cent thots be say we get the people and the zeal to excel, provided the ground is level. Even if u graduate from Harvard or Emory how u wan compete with IBB son wey don get like 30% shares of Glo, comm'n

Wait until it becomes impossible for you and me to get NBC licences for direct-to-home TV. You people don't understand politicians. They are experts at robbing Peter to pay Paul and keeping a fat commission.

i know there may be some wronge doing in the way the government took over the rights. but NIGERIANS wake up and see. s. africa and its enterprise use africa as fools. they use us. nigeria is a country with ppl with a difference we should stop being in the shadow of s. africa and we should take over the affairs of africa. like in s. africa blacks have the political power, while the whites have the economical power. the case goes here, Dstv has had rights for the whole sub-saharan africa. which generates alot of money. WAKE UP PLS

Do you think this issue was well settled? Should'nt someone take Multichoice to Court for Bundling Nigeria into a licence they purchased for profit? And how come STV and AIT didnt show this years UEFA Champ Lge?

Seun is right on this issue.
DSTV does not have exclusive rights to CNN because ABG, DISC communications , CTL and another company have the same rights to brodcast in Nigeria.
There are over 18 DTH operators in Nigeria so there is no monoploly here.
Skysports paid huge money to the EPL for exclusive rights to the English premiership league and the current 3 year deal is worth over 1,000 Million Pounds ( 1 billion in Nigerian parlance ) and the only way it can get the money back is to rebundle exclusive packages all over the world. If Nigeria want to be delisted among the SubSaharan African countries where you can buy program packages into we will only be enriching the foreign content providers.
English football was not as popular as it is now 10 years ago and maybe in another 10 years from now Nigeria League will be more popular just like Home Videos and then guess who is brodcasting Nigerian Premier League - Supersport.

Seun is NOT correct.

He's really smart, though, so that also shows that this is not a praticularly simple issue!

In any case what has happened is this:

Nigeria has added an extra requirement for foreign operators who wish to do business within its shores. It is her right as a sovereign nation. Not 'stealing' or 'stripping' anything at all. If you don't like it, leave.

Also, note that it takes effect 'upon the lapse' of any currently existing agreement. What that means is that the rights have NOT been 'stripped' or 'stolen' from multichoice, but Multichoice CANNOT be allowed to renew such an agreement while still operating in Nigeria. If they do, the govt will kick them out. So its simply their decision. If they renew the agreement, they will just leave. AND NIGERIAN STATIONS WILL STILL BE UNABLE TO ACQUIRE THE RIGHTS BECAUSE DSTVV WILL STILL HAVE THEM!

So, what that means is tat dstv has a choice. Lose Nigeria or keep your exclusive broadcasting rights over Africa. It is simply Nigeria taking advantage of its position as a major source of revenue for the service provider.

An excellent move, and not a wrong or evil one in any way.

For those who've been complaining about DStv's monopoly in Nigeria, the situation is no different in it's home country, In South Africa, if you want to watch any major sporting event there's only one outlet that broadcasts it and that's DStv which costs around US$60 for a month's subscription.

Here an interesting news article on upcoming competition for DStv in South Africa.

Nice one smokie, thanks for that.

Hey Nairalanders,
everybody has cited his/her candid opinion about this isue which are all correct.Now,the question is what is the solution,i mine,way out of this and how do we go about it,'cos sincerely,we sport lovers cannot afford to do without DSTV.Sorry,but i'm not trying to sound unpatroitic,but how many of our local stations can provide/render the same service(s) as DSTV.
Let's us all the realistic.Our govt that stripped them of this right has not put anything as replacement. It's always the same cock n bull story.

there are companies waiting in the wings to do this