Stakeholders To GOTv: You’re Operating Illegal Business; Take Case To N/Assembly, Jonathan, November 13, 2013

Stakeholders To GOTv: You’re Operating Illegal Business; Take Case To N/Assembly, Jonathan

The controversy surrounding the operation of pay-tv channel, GoTV in Nigeria continues unabated with some aggrieved stakeholders in the industry insisting that the pay-tv channel is not only operating illegally in the country but also doing so with the active connivance of the officials of the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC).

Thegazellenews.com can revealed that the aggrieved stakeholders have vowed to fight the matter to a logical conclusion using all available legal means. “We will fight this to a logical conclusion and we would use all available legal means to ensure that we get justice on this matter,” Dawud Abiodun, one of those who spoke with our correspondent said.

According to another stakeholder, Anastacia Onyewu, they are taken the case to the Minister of Information, Labaran Maku. “If we don’t get redress from Maku, we will go to the National Assembly and the President and if all these fail, we will go to court,” he said, real anger showing on his face.

The bone of contention has been whether or not GOTv can operate Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) when it seems it has not been licenced to do so.

In our earlier report, thegazellenews.com had reported that going by investigation based on a petition by the Stakeholders to the NBC, GOTv was not licenced to operate DTT in the country.

According to the petition, GOTv has no legal right to transmit digital broadcasting in Nigeria using DVB-T technology. The petitioners through a letter to the NBC questioned the right of GOTv providing Digital Terrestrial Transmission (DTT) services in Nigeria. They stated that such services can only be provided for now by the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) which is the only organ licenced by the NBC to provide such service in Nigeria.

Thegazellenews.com’s investigation had revealed that the stakeholders’ claim may have been right. The Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, had cleared the air after one of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meetings. Maku confirmed that NTA is the only organisation approved by the Federal Government to provide DTT service, thus meaning NTA is the public signal distributor licenced in the country. Simply put, no DTT licence has been granted to any other service provider except the one given to NTA. So the question of why is GOTv operating and expanding its service illegally when it seems it has not been licenced to do so arises?

For the uninitiated, the Digital Video Broadcasting Terrestrial (DVBT) offers Digital Terrestrial Television services while the Digital Video Broadcasting Handheld (DVBH) offers digital mobile television services.

Investigation revealed that there is a whole lot of difference between the two. The former allows the operator to transmit from video terrestrial television while the later only gives room for the operator to provide services only on handheld devices such mobile phones, i-phones, i-pad among others. Since the NTA is the only organisation legally licenced to provide terrestrial television services, why is GOTv doing so illegally?

However, GOTv seems to have favour with the NBC with the agency declaring that the pay-tv channel can operate DTT in Nigeria without any hindrance.

According to the NBC, the pay-tv channel has every legal right to provide the service since the parent company of the channel, Details Nigeria Limited, has upgraded its licence which allowed the pay-tv company to provide both mobile and terrestrial services.

Speaking on the controversy, the Head of Public Affairs of NBC, Mrs. Maimuna Jimada, stated that GOTv through Details Nigeria Limited has licence to operate Multipoint Multimedia Distribution System (MMDS) and Digital Video Broadcasting – Handheld (DVB-H).

Mrs. Jimada stated that “what Details Nigeria Limited has simply done was to deploy the Digital Video Broadcasting – Technology2 (DVB-T2) which allows it to provide both Digital Video Broadcasting-Handheld (DVB-H) and Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) services”.

She debunked the claim that GOTv was using understand tactics to ensure that it remains in the market. “I’m not aware of any scheming. The company has a licence that allows it to operate and provide the services it is providing and I have simply explained how it attained such status,” she said.

But some analysts in the industry believed that the agency is speaking from two sides of the mouth and indeed thegazellenews.com can reveal that NBC has deliberately decided not to speak on the Minister’s statement that it was only NTA that has been licenced to provide DTT services.

According to them, GOTv, aided by the NBC, is using the inter-connectivity and similarity between DVBT and DVBH to play a fast one on the Nigerian government.

“We have found out that GOTv is only licenced to provide DVBH services but is using that to provide DTT services to members of the public illegally. This should stop and we will fight this to a logical conclusion. If the NBC is not acting on this, we will take the matter to the National Assembly and we may even go to court,” Nwachukwu Austin, an industry stakeholder told thegazellenews.com.

Industry watchers believed that there is need for the Nigerian government through the Minister of Information, Labaran Maku, to make a public clarification on the matter. “The Minster needs to intervene because it seems the NBC has fallen for the antics of GOTv. If the Minister has said that the NTA is only agency licenced to run DTT, then we need to know when the decision has been overturned or else it means GOTv is illegal,” Rasheed Ayinde, an industry watcher said, a view corroborated by others who spoke with thegazellenews.com.

As it is, it seems the battle line has just been drawn on this controversy, we will continue to keep you updated as events unfold.

Haba

Because gotv done kill startimes abi?