The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has ordered MultiChoice Nigeria, the operator of DStv and GOtv, to suspend its planned subscription price hike pending the conclusion of an ongoing investigation into the proposed tariff adjustment.

The directive, issued on Thursday in a statement signed by the FCCPC’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Ondaje Ijagwu, aims to protect consumers from potential exploitation while the review process is underway.

The decision follows MultiChoice’s request for an extension regarding its scheduled appearance before the regulatory body to address concerns over frequent price hikes. Initially, the FCCPC had summoned MultiChoice’s Chief Executive Officer to an investigative hearing on February 27. However, the hearing was postponed to March 6, 2025, with a mandate for the CEO and relevant officers to attend and provide a comprehensive response.

“As part of this directive, MultiChoice is expressly instructed to maintain the existing price structure as of February 27, 2025, pending the commission’s review and final determination on the matter,” the FCCPC stated. The commission emphasized that the price freeze is a precautionary measure to prevent arbitrary pricing adjustments during the inquiry.

MultiChoice had previously informed its customers about the impending price review set to take effect on March 1, 2025, attributing the adjustment to rising costs of delivering premium content.

In a notification titled “Price Adjustments for DStv and GOtv Packages,” the company explained: “Dear Customer, please note that effective March 1, 2025, there will be a price adjustment on all DStv packages. This is to enable us to continue offering our customers world-class homegrown and international content, delivered through the best technology.”

While the Compact Plus and Premium packages were set to remain at N30,000 and N44,500, respectively, other subscription plans, including the DStv Compact package, were expected to be affected by the price hike.

The FCCPC has assured consumers that further updates will be provided as the investigation progresses.