Leading telecommunication giant and network provider MTN Nigeria is making an interesting and preliminary move into the digital Pay TV.
Network provider MTN Nigeria, has procure a license from Nigeria’s broadcasting regulator, Nigeria Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) to use the 700 MHz spectrum to provide pay TV broadcasting services, according to Vanguard.
According to broadcasting regulator NBC, reported that MTN Nigeria has purchased the license for $154 million (NGN36 billion), the money that NBC says it will apply into setting the country’s analog switch-off back on course. According to NBC, the money is only a little shy of 50% of its NGN70 billion ($351 million) switchover budget.
Our great nation missed out in the initial June 17, 2015 deadline for Digital Pay TV switch-off alongside with most of African countries. However, the nation has now set another deadline goal in line with other West African countries for June 20, 2017. NBC believes Nigeria is on target for the new date.
“With the current arrangement through which we have secured more than half of our budgetary needs to transit, and as we explore other avenues, we are confident that the new date is achievable,” NBC director general, Emeka Mba said.
According to Tech Cabal, MTN’s move into cable TV services is significant. The telecom giant has been racing to reduce reliance on voice as various OTT services like Whatsapp, Viber and others impinge upon that substrate of its services. In 2014, it rolled out a slew of services that made tech savvy in the country to conclude at the time that MTN was no longer just a Telco, but more.
It’s unclear how MTN will execute its cable service. The company has apparently been discreet about it. But it’s likely that it will draw heavily from what Safaricom already has in Kenya. It’s not the first time MTN is dabbling into paid-for video entertainment. In 2014, among of the fungible services it rolled out were DoBox and Afrinolly, both streaming services for Hollywood movies.
Photo Credit: Tech Cabal