Subscribers to pay USSD charges with airtime as telcos, banks consider new system

By Favour Unukaso TELECOM subscribers will soon be paying for the use of Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) with deductions from their airtime.     Findings showed that talks are currently at advanced stages between the deposit money banks (DMBs) and telecommunications operators to introduce an end-user billing system.   End-user billing refers to a... Read More

Subscribers to lose unused airtime after prolonged inactivity on telephone line

By Favour Unukaso GOING forward, telephone subscribers will be made to lose unused credit on their telephone lines after prolonged inactivity. This is according to a proposed framework, which was subjected to discussions on Tuesday. Subscribers have within 12 months to claim every unused airtime, or they risk losing it. Indeed, at the virtual... Read More

Telcos claim 50% tariff hike not sufficient as lawyer carpets NCC

By Favour Unukaso DESPITE mounting opposition against the Federal Government approved 50 per cent telephony services tariff hike, telecommunications companies have said the percentage approved is not sufficient enough to help in reducing the challenges the sector is facing. The operators under the aegis of the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) stressed... Read More

Telecoms tariff hike shouldn’t be more than 30 to 60%, says Minister

  By Favour Unukaso THE Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, Wednesday, hinted that the tariff hike to be approved by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) should be between 30 and 60 per cent threshold.     Tijani said the ministry would not approve a 100 per cent hike, stressing that... Read More

Telecoms operators earn N5.3tr in revenue, adds 14% to GDP in 2023

  By Sola Balogun TELECOMMUNICATIONS operators in Nigeria earned N5.3 trillion in revenue from their service offerings in the country in 2023. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), which revealed this in the 2023 year-end performance report, titled: ‘2023 Subscriber/Network Performance Report,’ released yesterday, listed the operators to include the GSM players, which earned N4 trillion;... Read More

Telcos get NCC approval to disconnect UBA, Zenith, Wema USSD platforms

By Favour Unukaso Telecommunications operators have been authorised to disconnect the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) codes assigned to nine financial institutions due to unpaid debts. This directive was given by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on Tuesday in a public notice signed by the Commission’s Director of Public Affairs, Reuben Muoka. NCC said... Read More

Telecoms operators get tariff hike as minister demands service improvement

By Favour Unukaso THE Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, has said that new tariff hike will soon be approved for the sector. After meeting with the telecoms operators on Wednesday in Abuja, said the Nigerian Communications tions Commission (NCC) will soon come up with modalities for tariff adjustment in... Read More

Telcos propose 100% tariff hike amid backlashes

  By Favour Unukaso  TELECOMMUNICATIONS operators said they made a proposal of 100 per cent tariff hike to the regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in their plea for hike in tariffs on services offered including voice, data and digital.    MTN Chief Executive Officer, Karl Toriola, disclosed this on Thursday, when he featured... Read More

NCC directs telcos on tariffs transparency

By Favour Unukaso THE Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has issued a directive to telecommunications operators to simplify their tariff plans, bundles, and promotional activities. This move aims to provide clear, easy-to-understand, and accurate information about the cost of voice, short messaging service (SMS) and data services to subscribers. The directive, titled: “Guidance on the... Read More

Telcos disconnect 40m telephone lines, to bar more SIMs

By Favour Unukaso BY last weekend, telecommunications operators have barred about 40 million Subscribers Identification Modules (SIM) cards not linked to owners National Identity Numbers (NIN). The Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), which disclosed this, said more telephone lines would be barred by the end of March. ALTON Chairman, Gbenga Adebayo,... Read More