Nigerian Communications Commission Bans Promos by Telecom Companies

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has announced that promos and lotteries by telecommunication providers in Nigeria should stop. This comes after a series of complains nationally – by consumers about difficulty they face in getting calls and text messages across. This got the Minister of Communication, Omobola Johnson to respond recently, that facility maintenance contributes to current network disruption in the country. Speaking on the ban, the Director of Public Affairs, Tony Ojobo at NCC said, that, “Consistent with its processes, the commission has carefully evaluated the complaints received especially against the backdrop of sustaining the integrity of the networks, the general interest of the consumers, the socio-economic impact of these promotions on operators and other relevant stakeholders. On-net calls were now being offered by operators at tariffs well below the prevailing interconnects rates thereby introducing anti-competitive practices and behaviour. Termination of calls were becoming increasingly difficult from one network to another and overall consumer experience on the networks has become very poor thereby making it extremely difficult for subscribers to make calls successfully.”