MultiChoice Malawi slapped with K10m fine for breaching license conditions

Malawi Communication Regulatory Authority (MACRA) has slapped MultiChoice Malawi with a K10 million fine for breaching its license conditions.

Further, MultiChoice Malawi has been ordered to refund subscribers for adjusting DSTv tariffs without approval from the authority.

In a statement issued on Friday, MACRA Director General Daud Suleman said the 78^th meeting of the authority’s board found that the locally owned franchise for local and international television channels breached section 74(1) of the Communications and clause 11 of MultiChoice Subscription Management Service Licence by adjusting tariffs for DSTv without approval from MACRA.

“The finding was made after hearing MultiChoice Malawi on 28^th November 2022 and allowing Multichoice Malawi to make written representations pursuant to regulation 32(3)(e) of the Communications (Telecommunications and Broadcasting Licensing) Regulations,” said Suleman in the statement.

Following the revelation, MACRA also ordered MultiChoice to credit its customers per bouquet the difference between pre-adjustment price for its bouquets and the new price which was implemented in July, 2022.

“The refunds shall cover the period from the date of effecting the purported tariff adjustment (15 July 2022) to the date of refund. MultiChoice should submit its subscriber database to the authority and publish a notice in the press stating that customers have been credited with the difference between the unapproved tariff and the pre-adjustment tariff,” reads part of the statement.

MACRA has since warned MultiChoice Malawi against implementing unapproved tariff revisions without seeking its approval.

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