Abuja court adjourns suit challenging Multi-Choice’s subscription rate
Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has adjourned the suit challenging the outrageous subscription rates by MultiChoice Nigeria Limited against Nigerian customers to July 10, 2024, for further mention.
The suit was instituted by an Abuja-based legal activist, Maduabuchi Idam.
In the suit, he is asking for N85m against MultiChoice for “oppressive, gross extortion and unwarranted exploitation of customers through its unjust subscription and unfair trade tactics in Nigeria.”
At the hearing, both the plaintiff -Idam and the defendants – MultiChoice Nigeria Limited, Federal Competition & Consumer Protection Commission, National Broadcasting Commission and Attorney General of the Federation – were represented by their lawyers.
Justice Ekwo asked the defendants’ lawyers whether they had filed their respective responses to the plaintiff’s claim and they said no, but have the capacity to respond.
Recall that in the court process marked FHC/ABJ/ CS/ 562/2024 filed on April 29, the plaintiff asked the court to compel Multi-Choice to regulate its meter or decoder in order to read the customer’s subscription only per view or during viewing.
Idam, a customer of Multi-Choice Television Networks Service Provider is also praying to the court for an award of the sum of N80,000,000.00 as general damages and N5 million as the cost of litigation against the company for “its several years of extortion and violation of the plaintiff’s right as provided by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018.”
There is also an order of Mandamus compelling the 2nd, 3rd and 4th defendants to consequently direct every other TV network provider in Nigeria to regulate or meter their subscription to read per view or during viewing and roll over unused subscriptions after the expiration of the 2024 04 3012:51 duration.
