BREAKING: Netflix increases subscription price in Nigeria by 40%
The world’s largest video streaming platform, Netflix, has once again increased its subscription prices in Nigeria with its Premium Plan going up by 40% to 7,000 from N5,000 per month.
The latest price increment makes it the second price adjustment by the platform in 2024.
According to the price update on the company’s website, the Standard plan subscription, which is popular among Nigerian subscribers for its HD quality and multi-screen viewing options, has been increased from N4,000 to N5,500. This represents a 37.5% increment.
Netflix’s Basic plan, which was N2,900 has been jerked up by 21% to N3,500, while the lowest subscription plan, Mobile, has gone up by 83% from N1,200 to N2,200.
The streaming giant last reviewed prices for Nigerian users in April 2024. The standard plan rose from N3,600 to N4,000. While the basic plan remained at N2,900, the premium plan was hiked to N5,000 from N4,400, and the mobile plan was increased to N1,600 from N1,200.
At the time, Netflix cited a broader strategy to revise its subscription fees across various regions. In the past year, Netflix has adjusted prices in its key markets, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and France.
The new increase comes as Nigeria grapples with rising inflation and a cost of living crisis. With declining spending power and a shrinking middle class, payments for streaming services will become less of a priority for most Nigerians.
Despite being Africa’s most populous nation, Nigeria is a small market for Netflix—accounting for 10.5% of total subscribers in Africa, according to Omdia Research, a tech research-based firm. In November 2023, Netflix lost its market leader status in Africa to MultiChoice’s Showmax.
This is coming three months after Multichoice increased the price of its DStv and GOtv packages.
The company cited a rise in the cost of business operations in Nigeria due to price adjustments.
According to the notice signed by Multichoice CEO John Ugbe, subscribers received via email, the new prices for DStv packages included increases for the Premium package, now priced at N37,000 monthly, up from the current N29,500 subscription fee.
Similarly, the Compact+ bouquet increased to N25,000 from N19,800 monthly, while the Compact bouquet would cost N15,700 instead of the current N12,500.
For GOtv users, price adjustments were also announced, with increases across packages such as Supa Plus, Supa, Max, and Jolli.
However, after outrage over the hike, a Federal High Court in Abuja issued an order to halt the increase in subscription prices by Multichoice Nigeria Limited, the operator of DStv and GOtv.
The order temporarily put a stop to the price increases, offering relief to subscribers who expressed concerns over the successive hikes in subscription fees over the past year.
Multichoice had faced criticism for the frequency of its subscription fee increments, with this being the third increase in the past year alone.