Founder of IrokoTV, Jason Njoku, couldn’t contain his irritation. The innovative entrepreneur went on a Twitter tear on Wednesday, strongly condemning the 6th Broadcast Code recently released by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC).
The part mandating broadcasters and exclusive licensees to share such exclusive rights with other broadcasters in the country mainly drew his ire.
He held nothing back, expressing his frustration with the regulation in a series of tweets. “Nigeria Broadcasting Commission (NBC) in making exclusivity illegal, compelling sub-licensing of content and regulating price, are effectively turning the private enterprise into state property. Interference distorts markets. If implemented, this 100% destroys PayTV in Nigeria.
“Under these proposed terms, it makes zero sense for @irokotv, @ROK-DSTV, @Netflix Naija, @irokotv, @africamagictv, @Filmhouse Cinema, @SilverbirdTV, @SceneoneTV or any other platform or independent production house to invest in local content. Zero sense. No consultation, no thought. Nothing.
“This our champagne socialism and zero input style of policymaking is the reason Nigeria is stunted in everything. I invest billions of Naira in content then I am compelled to share with everyone else as NBC sets the price. Why? Dark forces or incompetence is at play here. Ridiculous.
“For ‘national emergencies, ’ 20% of broadcast hours should be dedicated to well. The government. Nationalisation in everything but name…Soon CNN will leave its daily programming to show the arrival of Orji Kalu and APC and PDP conventions. Essentially be ready for NTA everywhere. This is the highest priority for NBC. Highest.”
But he appears to be in the minority alongside a few Nollywood dissenters who seem not to get the full crux of the Code. The other leading investors, including Netflix, Amazon and Africa Magic, are keeping their counsels for now. The rest of the creative industry appears to have embraced the move, and have even hailed it.
Sections 9.01 to 9.03 of the new NBC Code which states that a broadcaster must sub-license a programme in any genre if such enjoys massive viewership among Nigerians is what Njoku find offensive and threatening to investments.
Another section of the new Code, 6.2.10, prohibits exclusivity rights in broadcasting sporting events in the country and might be challenging for players like MultiChoice whose DSTV owns the rights to the famous English Premier League, Champions League, Spanish La Liga and Italy’s Seria A in Nigeria.
The section declares: “No prime foreign sports content shall be transmitted in the Nigerian territory unless the owner of such content has also acquired Prime Local Sports Content of the same category with a minimum of 30% of the cost of acquiring the Prime Foreign Sports content.”
Conversely, Nigerian content producers who see NBC’s move as protecting their interests, have welcomed the move.
The Filmic Group, a platform for creative industry practitioners comprising movie producers, theatre directors and content producers, among others, expressed their support for the new regulation earlier this year during a meeting with the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed.
One of the Group’s leaders, the movie producer, Mahmood Alli-Balogun, thanked the Minister for the implementation of policies aimed at revolutionising the creative industry and unlocking its enormous potentials for wealth creation and employment generation.
The Chair of Audio Visual Rights Society of Nigeria (AVRS), country’s sole collective management organisation for cinematograph films, said: “I want to say that since the deregulation of broadcasting in Nigeria, I think what we have today that we are celebrating in advance following its complete passage is a landmark occurrence in the sense that since deregulation, we have had the short end of the stick. But with what you have done, Honourable Minister, I think we can begin to sing ‘Uhuru’ because as content producers, we have been at the mercy of the other people in the value chain.”
Another member of the Filmic Group and founder of Storm 360, Obi Asika said with the unfolding of the new policies in the broadcasting industry, within the next couple of years, 50 new viable channels could be floated to provide entertainment and create more jobs, given the nation’s huge market and the commitment of the industry players.
Some players in the creative industry are also of the view that the concerned PayTV investors shouldn’t have waited until the introduction of the new NBC Code before they started highlighting the threats to their investments. Everyone knew that the amendment had been in the works since last year; hence they had adequate time to have made representations.
They ought to have commenced their lobby efforts while the NBC Reforms Implementation Committee comprising the then NBC Director of Monitoring but now Acting Director-General, Professor Armstrong Idachaba; Acting Chairman of the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria, Godfrey Ohuabunwa,
and Director, Legal Services, Ministry of Information and Culture, J.K. Ehicheoya were still working.
Other members of the Committee that submitted its report to the Minister in November before he gave the NBC the go-ahead with the implementation of the new Code in January were secretary, Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, Binta Adamu Bello; Director of Administration, FRCN, Ibrahim Jimoh; NBC Board Member, Kingsley Ndubuisi, and Chief Press Secretary, Ministry of Information and Culture, Joe Mutah.
While they are well within their rights to accuse the NBC of protectionism, the truth is that Nigeria is not alone in doing this. The French have strong law protecting their local content. South Africa began efforts to break DSTV’s stranglehold on premium sports content in 2018. The Independent Communications Authority Of South Africa (ICASA) unveiled its Draft Sports Broadcasting Services Amendment Regulations aimed at making significant sporting events accessible for free to all citizens of South Africa two years ago.
For content producers like Sola Fajobi, NBC’s regulation is not hurtful to anyone. It’s instead a boon to content producers while also improving the broadcast industry. “You shoot a film; you run on your channel and license to another broadcaster if you want to. The Code is saying other broadcasters can come to you for the same content and you can fix the price you wish to collect on your content. Provided the other broadcasters can pay the price you fix, they have the right to license it from you,” he said.
Communications scholar and renowned film critic, Dr Shaibu Husseini, believes Njoku and the few Nollywood people opposing the new NBC Code are merely crying wolf. Though he admits that the framing of Section 901 could have been better and more specific to remove all ambiguities, there’s no need to thrash the regulation.
“I don’t see why anyone would question the intention to improve our broadcast industry by making it competitive through restriction of monopoly, increased revenue and blocking exclusivity. Why would some people be cut out?” he began.
Husseini further explained that the regulation is targeted more at sports and not Nollywood. “For example, some have access to premium sports content that others don’t have. Like Nigeria participating in the World Cup and only one outfit has the right. That means ordinary Nigerians who can’t afford payment will be cut away. The regulation says you can sub-license and it’s not going to be free. Whoever wants it will pay the amount you fix. NBC is not reducing anything. There is nowhere in the Code where NBC stipulates price.”
Concerning Njoku’s tweet on national emergencies, Husseini said no socially responsible broadcaster needs to be compelled. “During national emergencies, you don’t have to be coerced. No one told Channels, TVC to dedicate substantial time to coverage of COVID-19 in the country. CNN, Aljazeera, they devote significant coverage to COVID-19 and the George Floyd issue. When you want to argue, you do it logically. The Code is not about killing PayTV. It is taking care of monopolistic tendencies.
“I read some of his tweets, and they are misleading some Nollywood players. There’s a part of the amended Code that stipulates that when you are bringing a foreign production to the country, 70% of the cast should be Nigerians. This is contrary to what happened with ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ where almost everything was imported. No broadcaster will react because it’s to their advantage.
“Yes, Section 9.01 needs to be more specific to remove all ambiguities. It is about sports licensing and giving Nigerians access. And it’s not about DSTV; it’s about everyone. NTA can’t obtain content and say it’s exclusive. On the long run, it’s not a Nollywood battle. It’s rather beneficial to them. If you sell your content to someone, after 18 months, you are free to sell to everyone. The NBC Code has been there since 1993 and is updated every five years. NBC doesn’t deal with content suppliers; it’s for licensees and broadcast stations. The new regulation is about increasing revenue to broadcast stations, content producers and restricting monopoly and anti-competition practices.”
As Husseini noted, the furore over exclusivity might well be a case of crying wolf. But then, more reactions are expected as people obtain the document and study it.