"Value or Illusion? Questioning the DStv \u201cIncreased Value Offer\u201d"

" Value or Illusion? Questioning the DStv \u201cIncreased Value Offer\u201d \r\n\r\nWhat started as a fierce demand by Hon. Sam George (MP), Minister for Communications, Digital Technology and Innovation, for fair pricing of pay TV from MultiChoice Ghana Ltd in their DStv subscription fees climaxed last week, with an announcement by the Minister on DStv\u2019s price evaluation. In his address, the minister stated emphatically that he went into the negotiation seeking at least a 30 percent reduction and has managed to land an \u201cincreased value offer\u201d of 33 percent to 50 percent, depending on the package of a subscriber. In the Minister\u2019s own words, subscribers get an \u201cautomatic upgrade\u201d to the next higher package when they pay for or renew their package. Meaning that, a \u201cCompact\u201d package (GHS380) subscriber gets automatically upgraded to the next higher package, \u201cCompact Plus\u201d package (GHS570) at the same cost of the Compact package.\r\n\r\n But, is increased value offer what the minister promised? \r\n\r\nThe Criticality Analysis of Governance Issues (CAGI) has followed the Sam George \u2013 DStv pricing saga since it began. When the Minister appeared on the Government Accountability Series and stated, \u201cI wrote back to the NCA on Monday and directed them to suspend DStv\u2019s broadcasting license effective August 7, 2025, if the company refuses to reduce its bundle prices,\u201d he was very emphatic about the goal of price evaluation. He demanded a price reduction. The CAGI of that week commented that \u201ctop-down mandates risk undermining the very market trust that underpins the economy\u2019s recent upswing,\u201d and recommended that the Ministry should \u201cconvene a structured meeting at which Multichoice would disclose its cost build-up\u2014content licensing, currency hedging, local operations\u2014and compare cross-market pricing, which such transparency would allow both sides to negotiate in good faith, aligned with Ghana\u2019s broader commitment to market discipline.\u201d Indeed, the meetings happened, and the outcome of the committee\u2019s deliberation on the evaluation of DStv pricing was not MultiChoice reducing its bundle prices but rather an \u201cunprecedented increased value offer\u201d as announced by the Minister.\r\n\r\n Is this increased value offer really unprecedented? \r\n\r\nWell, unless you have never been a subscriber of MultiChoice\u2019s DStv. MultiChoice occasionally offers upgrade promotions just like what the Minister announced, especially when it\u2019s been a while since one reconnected their decoder. Subscribers usually get a call from MultiChoice as to why they are yet to reconnect and may offer their promotions, or an SMS that urges them to reconnect their decoder and get upgraded, or a month of extra viewing on them. Upgrades are just for the month, so it\u2019s either you stay on the new package, which means you have to pay for the package, or downgrade to your former package. This is done to attract subscribers to higher packages. What, perhaps, may be uncommon is the nationwide rollout of this upgrade promotion to DStv subscribers.\r\n\r\nDStv is a monthly (30 days) paid subscription, so what happens after a month of enjoying the increased value offer? Since this increased value offer is expected to exist till the committee reconvenes in the next three months, the offer is available while it lasts. However, a deeper understanding of DStv\u2019s pricing system should let one know that the increased value offer upgrades a subscriber to the next higher packages, of which the prices have not changed. Padi is still GHS59, Access is GHS99, Family is GHS190, Compact is GHS380, Compact Plus is GHS570, and Premium is GHS865. If one gets upgraded to Compact Plus, it\u2019s either he\/she stays on the package in the following month and pay GHS570 to get channels still running. Unless MultiChoice clarifies that one can, in the second month, again pay for Compact (GHS380) and still get access to Compact Plus channels. Else, it\u2019s either a subscriber downgrades or pay the price of his new package to \u2018enjoy\u2019, per DStv\u2019s subscription system.\r\n\r\nEssentially, what has been offered is just a nationwide upgrade promotion to all Ghanaian subscribers. It is not unprecedented, as MultiChoice usually runs this promotion. Most importantly, it is not a price reduction. Between 2021 and 2025, the monthly fee for the Access package climbed from around GHS45 to GHS99. That is about 120 percent increase. Ghanaians need to know whether the increased value offer means new package values or just upgrades to the next higher package, which you either choose to stay on by paying its full value or downgrade to your former package in the following month.\r\n\r\nThe Hon. Sam George (MP), Minister for Communications, Digital Technology and Innovation, must clarify.\r\n\r\n Credit- IMANI\u2019s Criticality Analysis of Governance and Economic Issues September 29 \u2013 October 3, 2025 "

"Value or Illusion? Questioning the DStv \u201cIncreased Value Offer\u201d"

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