Communication Minister Sam Nartey George has dismissed suggestions that Ghana pay-TV provider, DStv’s, pricing challenges are tied to the country’s market size.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on September 30, he argued that population has no direct link to subscription costs, contrary to popular claims.
“It’s not an issue of just market sizes, because if it was an issue of market sizes, the analysis you did, you should check how much Liberia is paying,” he said.
“Liberia has a population of five million people. That’s the population of Accra. Before we got this intervention, Liberia was paying less than us. Angola has a similar population to Ghana, about 33 million people. Angola was paying in the region of about $30.”
The Minister’s comments come on the back of a breakthrough in negotiations between government and MultiChoice Africa, providers of the service.
Ghanaian DStv subscribers are set to enjoy more value for their money from October 1, following new arrangements agreed after an engagement with the pay-TV provider.
MultiChoice Africa has committed to rolling out an “unprecedented increased value offer only in Ghana,” giving subscribers between 33% to 50% more value depending on their package.
“This new arrangement means Ghanaians will get more services for less,” Mr George said at a press briefing in Accra on September 29.
“It is a commitment by MultiChoice to respond to the concerns of subscribers in Ghana, and the offer is unmatched anywhere else in Africa.”
He described arguments that Nigeria’s low subscription rates are driven by its population size as “uninformed.”
“For those who make that uninformed argument that Nigeria’s price is low simply because of the number of the population there, then they haven’t followed through,” he said.
“They’re speaking from sentiment, and what they have heard people say on social media. They’re not speaking from fact.
“Speaking from fact, it will tell you that population does not necessarily play a role in the pricing model that has been done. Because if population played a role, Liberia should not be charging less than Ghana.”
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