DSTV may slash subscription rates

Last week’s entry of an indigenous pay-TV company, Continental Satellite Limited, into the market may have prompted the management of MultiChoice, owners of the Digital Satellite Television brand, into exploring new marketing options to retain its subscribers in the country.

One of the marketing strategies that DSTV, which for many years has been the dominant pay-TV operator in the country, intends to adopt was the downward review of its subscription rates in tandem with that of CONSAT.

Currently, a DSTV decoder and dish sell for N15,500, while those of CONSAT go for N15,000. Monthly subscription rates for the former are between N3,000 and N11,650, while the new entrant has a flat rate of N4,000.

A MultiChoice employee in one of the DSTV offices in Lagos, who simply identified himself as Okechukwu, said that there would be 30 per cent crash on all subscription packages after the 2014 World Cup.

He said, “The price crash will happen just before the start of the 2014/2015 English Premiership season.

“The price crash is simply to retain our customers, especially now that StarTimes seems to be doing well and there is a very strong belief that CONSAT will do better.”

Okechukwu said the belief that CONSAT would do well stems from the fact that its Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Mayokun Okunola, had worked at DSTV and understood the business well.

“He (Okunola) also knows the strength and weaknesses of DSTV, and he will, no doubt, capitalise on them and make CONSAT soar,” he said.