African pay-TV provider Multichoice Group has attributed the drop in DStv subscribers to Nigeria’s economic woes.
Multichoice reports that the number of active subscribers in the nation has dropped by 18%.
This was revealed by the business in its financial results for the year that concluded on March 31, 2024.
Multichoice claims that the fall in Nigeria had an impact on its entire subscriber base, resulting in a nine percent reduction for the year.
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Since Nigeria is included with other operating units outside of South Africa and labelled as “Rest of Africa,” the total subscription amount for Nigeria was not disclosed (RoA).
According to the report, the reduction of 18% in Nigeria resulted in a 13% decrease in the overall active subscribers of the RoA, which dropped from 9.3 million in 2023 to 8.1 million.
“The group’s 9% decline in active subscribers was mainly due to a 13% decline in the Rest of Africa business as mass-market customers in countries like Nigeria had to prioritize basic necessities over entertainment, while the South African business showed more resilience with a 5% decline.
“The Nigerian economy and consumers faced persistent challenges through FY24. The removal of fuel subsidies, sharp currency depreciation with the official naira halving in value, inflation climbing to over 30%, and higher emigration of the middle and upper class drove an 18% YoY decline in active subscribers,” the company said.
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According to Multichoice, this also caused Nigeria’s revenue share in the Rest of Africa to drop from 44% to 35%.
It did point out, though, that given an inflation rate that is still more than 20%, Ghana had a similar subscriber trend.
Multichoice went on to say that its RoA (Redemption, Africa, Ghana, Kenya, and Zimbabwe) business has to refocus its short-term priorities from subscriber development to cash flow protection and profitability due to the difficult market conditions.
Recall that based on a complaint brought by a Nigerian customer, the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal (CCPT) in Abuja issued an injunction blocking the firm from implementing the new prices prior to Multichoice’s increased subscription prices going into effect on May 1.
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According to a report by Anaedoonline.ng, Multichoice disregarded the court decision and went ahead with the new charges. As a result, the Tribunal fined the firm N150 million for contesting the court’s jurisdiction.
Additionally, Multichoice was mandated by the court to provide free one-month subscriptions to DSTV and GOTV to Nigerians.
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