Olaoluwakitan Babatunde
It was described as the game-changer for television broadcasting in Nigeria but two weeks after FreeTV was launched with fanfare in Lagos State, subscribers of the country’s official Free-To-View digital television platform have been moaning over the quality of its signal and reception.
Launched on 29 April in Lagos by Lai Mohammed, Minister of Information and Culture, as part of the national digital switchover (DSO) strategy, FreeTV was projected to Lagosians as the peak in digital broadcasting.
However, users appear to be disappointed and have been vociferous in expressing their disappointments. Notably, they have taken to FreeTV’s official social media pages to ventilate their anger.
One of the prominent complaints were about the unavailability of signal reception and activation problem in some parts of Lagos.
Kunle Olorode expressed his disappointment over the issue on FreeTV’s Twitter page. “With your reception not in Ikorodu, we need not bother about FreeTV for now,” he wrote. Another subscriber, Enoch Xcellency Sabo, wrote: “Activation problem, subscription problem, Refreshment problem, and all these, you must pass through their ‘Top’ dealers which also needed commission. Then what’s good about it?”
It is the same experience for Adesua Muyiwa Mathias, who decided to narrate his encounter with FreeTV on Facebook in a philosophical manner.
“Do you people remember ‘strong decoder’ product in Nigeria then. When this decoder is about to send dstv to exile we destroyed it by ourselves. Don’t be disappointed that this your decoder can only work or be view(ed) for just few times. As long we are still in this country NIGERIA,” Mathias wrote.
Osho Abiodun’s complaint is a bit more frontal. He is demanding a refund from FreeTV for his inability to activate all the 10 decoders he purchased from a dealer in Lagos.
“I bought 10 decoders from one of your distributors in Lagos and all are not working. The dealer can’t activate the decoders. Now, I don’t want to have any issue with FreeTV as from today and I want my money back,” he wrote on Facebook.
For those who have been a bit lucky with the signal, the number and quality of channels available have been disappointing. Some office them claimed they were deceived by the promoters of the service about the channels catalogue, saying it is short of what was advertised.
“I think heard 60 channels too. How come 20 channels (are showing)? Remaining 40 channels, according to the minister,” Morakinyo Oladipupo wrote on Facebook. Another subscriber on Facebook, Idris Ismail Ijetta, made similar complaint, saying: “My question is this, according to the minister, he said Lagos will received (sic) 60+ channels. But we that we are using FreeTV, d (sic) one with DTH, that is d (sic) decoder with dish; we are just receiving 22 channels. Pls, add more channels to DTH.”
Isiorho Eddy also bewailed on FreeTV’s Facebook page that the only channel working on his decoder was the one showing sports advertisement, while Emeka Godson urged the operator to “please add more reasonable channels”.
It is not only those who are using the recently launched service in Lagos that have bared out their grievances. Although it was rolled out in 2016 and is currently operational in six states (asides Lagos), a litany of complaints by earlier subscribers flooded the social media pages of FreeTV for its poor signal or monotonous list of channels or the discrepancy of the channel catalogue.
An Onitsha-based subscriber, Arinze Otimkpu, asked on Facebook why there is inconsistency in the number of channels provided, writing: “Why is FreeTV is only giving us only 12 channels while FreeTV Ghana is given Ghanaian about over 50 channels?”
Uzoma Sunday, another subscriber in Abuja, noted that he can hardly view the channels listed on his decoder. “Make una update this una decoder… We for Abuja no dey enjoy am again oooo, cracking stations here and there,” he wrote.
Olumoh Yusuf, who did not state his location, demanded an update of the service’s channels, writing: “You have good decoder, good service for only terrestrial decoder but with just few channels. It will be highly appreciated if you can add more channels like Aljazera, BBC, MBC action, MBC max, Bollywood (English) so as to make it sweeter. All these channels are free to air.”
Another prominent issue raised by subscribers and intending subscribers is that of abysmal customer service. Subscribers lamented the refusal of FreeTV staff to respond to their enquiries on the purchase of antenna, activation, subscription renewal and signal disappearance, despite the operator promising at the launch to be customer-inclined and customer-friendly.
Tindi Terkimbi Joseph could not hide his disappointment. “I am highly disappointed with FreeTV. I bought the barely a year, it got burnt, all efforts make to reach there (sic) customer service proved abortive. I will never buy again,” he wrote on Facebook.
An intending subscriber, Mbanugo Steve, also expressed similar sentiment. “Some of the questions I wanted to ask like names of stations on offer, price and where to buy, have been asked over an hour ago. But nobody is offering any answers,” he said.
Also, all attempts by Chidiebere Amaechi to ask where he can purchase the set-top boxes in Alapere, Ketu area of Lagos, and Tunde Niyi Biodun to know what number he can send a text message in order to activate his FreeTV unique package proved abortive as their messages have not been replied one week after posting them on Facebook.
The lack of the operator’s representatives providing reply to subscribers’ enquiries prompted Sunday Anthony Odeje, a subscriber, to post this Facebook message: “Sorry to inform those of you that are asking questions, that people managing the Facebook page of FreeTV does not respond to questions from customers. You can ask questions from now till next, you will not get any replies from them. However, I have used free tv for more than four years now.”
A check on the website of FreeTV revealed that the “about us” page had no contact details, while the “contact us” page was unavailable. Perusing through the operator’s Facebook page, it was discovered that the number listed on the page – 0703887277 – is actually operated by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), the broadcasting regulator, and not by FreeTV. The attendant, a woman, stated that the decoder costs between N12,000 and N13,000. She was, however, hesitant to provide more information, urging the caller to visit the website for more details.
