* Says it is puzzled since MACRA is aware that the company does not offer DStv service
* But MultiChoice Africa Holdings, who had already effected the price increase on their systems
* Thus MultiChoice was forced to look to the courts for assistance which has been granted in Lilongwe
By Duncan Mlanjira
MultiChoice Malawi maintains that it does not offer DStv service and therefore does not set or adjust the tariffs as the company is not an agent for MultiChoice Africa Holdings — the provider of the DStv service.
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This follows a court injunction that was granted to Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) prohibiting MultiChoice Malawi from effecting upwards tariff adjustment of the DStv service.
In a public statement, MultiChoice says it is puzzled since MACRA is aware that the company does not offer DStv service but MultiChoice Africa Holdings, who had already effected the price increase on their systems.
Thus MultiChoice says it was “forced to look to the courts for assistance” which has been granted in Lilongwe.
The service provider stresses that it is a responsible citizen that respects the rule of law and that it has applied and received approval from MACRA for adjustments to the GOtv tariff as it provides such service to the public and sets the tariff for that service.
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But in response, MACRA advises the public that to wait until Thursday, August 3 before to paying the DStv subscription fees between July 28 and August 3 are advised to pay the old DStv subscription tariffs.
The regulator says the High Court of Malawi has issued a temporary stay of the interim injunction it made on July 28 which restrained MultiChoice Malawi from making any changes or modifications to DSTV tariffs, including those stated in MultiChoice Malawi’s letter of July 17, 2023.
“The temporary stay is for a period of 4 days from 28th July 2023 to 3rd August 2023 to enable MultiChoice Malawi to correct its systems and apply the old DTSV tariffs,” says a statement from MACRA Director General, Daud Suleman, adding that the temporary stay of the injunction is to enable MultiChoice Malawi to revert to the old DSTV tariffs.
Daud Suleman
When announcing tariff adjustment on July 20 as regards to GOtv, MultiChoice Malawi announced that from August 1, GOtv Supa+ has been upgraded and is set to broadcast the much-loved English Premier League on SuperSport along with other high profile channels such as Universal TV, Studio Universal, Disney, Al Jazeera and CNN International.
Corporate Affairs Manager, Zena Makunje the upgraded package is at subscription fee of K33,000, which has access to over 70 exceptional channels and an expanded World of Champions offering, and a broader selection of thrilling football action on dedicated channels — SuperSport Select 3 and SuperSport English Premier League.
GOtv Supa+ also stretches beyond sports, offering the latest blockbuster movies and series fresh from Hollywood on channels Universal TV, Studio Universal and Disney.
Zena Makunje, Corporate Affairs Manager
She added that the entertainment is all-inclusive a binge family viewing catering for kids animated adventures on Cartoon Network as well as those who marvel the wonders of the planet through National Geographic.
Makunje added that the pricing has been arrived at and kept as low as possible after taking into consideration of the immense economic pressure customers are experiencing.
She said viewers who are not yet on Supa+ can upgrade through smart phone mobile services using the apps +470# and mygotv as well as mobile phone services of TNM Mpamba, Airtel Money and other banking digital services.
Meanwhile, the Premier League fixtures for the 2023-24 season have been released, and there are some eye-catching games for the opening weekend with champions Manchester City away to Burnley on August 11.
Champions Manchester City
Other opening weekend fixtures are:
Saturday August 12
Arsenal vs Nottingham Forest; Bournemouth v West Ham United; Brighton vs Luton Town; Everton vs Fulham; Sheffield United vs Crystal Palace; Newcastle United vs Aston Villa
Sunday August 13
Brentford vs Tottenham Hotspur; Chelsea vs Liverpool
Monday August 14
Manchester United vs Wolves
The big local derbies are: Manchester United vs Manchester City (October 28); Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur (September 23); Liverpool vs Everton (October 21); Manchester City vs Manchester United (March 2, 2024); Everton vs Liverpool (March 16) and Tottenham Hotspur vs Arsenal (April 27).
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