4 DSTV alternatives

If you are in Nigeria, you'd agree that DSTV is probably the most popular Pay TV service in town and since they came into the country from South Africa more than 10 years ago, they don't seem to be slowing down and have been gradually bigger and bigger and almost monopolized the market. Does it mean that without DSTV, a person can no longer watch entertaining TV?

I recall many years ago in the early 90s before DSTV came to town, Nigerians were still watching TV even without having to pay for it. In fact, the only fee that Nigerians pay to watch TV was just the Radio and TV license which was normally charged by the local government although only very few people bother to pay it.

One striking thing about DSTV in Nigeria is that their subscription rates have been increasing over the years and one wonders when this will stop. It would appear that the subscription rates tend to grow as the value of the Naira falls against foreign currencies such as the US dollar.

Anyway, one good thing about DSTV in Nigeria is that they do have many bouquets with some being for the rich and well fed while some are good enough for the poor or middle class.

I'm not joking. If you are only making minimum wage in Nigeria, it won't make sense if you go for the bouquet that costs N13,650(about $75) per month since it would take up most of your income. Most Nigerians who earn little income tend to go for DSTV access that costs about N1500(about $8) per month. With the increasing value of the US dollar and growing inflation, the subscription rates have also been going up.

For many families in Nigeria, DSTV has become more of a necessity than luxury as it keeps mostly kids and wives at home but it's also adding to the bills that one no longer pays for just water and electricity. One also has to pay for entertainment courtesy of DSTV.

Are there any alternatives? Yes they are and I'm about to give you 5 of them

1. Local TV: A lot of people might not know this but local tv stations still work in Nigeria and all you need is an antennae and a TV. It's free and you can watch local TV stations in your area. If you live in an isolated area, you might need a TV antennae booster, external antennae or something like that. You only have to put your TV in UHF mode and scan for local tv stations which you would get in minutes.

2. Internet TV: The internet is not just for sending emails or chatting but you can also use it to watch live tv. Many TV stations now offer a free streaming version of their tv on the web and all you need is their web address and an internet connection. You can watch local and foreign tv stations on the internet. Local tv stations like Channels, AIT and others allow you to stream from the web for free. You can also watch foreign tv stations such as FTV, CNN, using the internet. It can be hardwork trying to go to individual websites just to watch different internet tv stations so there are some internet tv aggregator sites that contain links for most of these channels and ones I know are Streema, World Wide Internet TV, Live TV Cafe and Freeinternetv.

3. Startimes TV: Startimes is a growing Pay tv service that is managed by Chinese investors in partnership with local TV stations like NTA, AIT, Channels and others. They offer sports channels, news channels like BBC and Al Jazeera, Indian movie channels, cartoons and so on. They offer one of the lowest subscription services in town with the latest called Nova bouquet going for just N600 per month. Who can beat that? With Startimes, you don't need to have a dish or large external antennae as it comes with it's own powerful decoder and a small antennae which you can use indoors.

4. Free to air TV: This is basically being able to watch satellite tv for free using a suitable decoder which you can get from the market. The only cost you have to spend is the initial cost of acquiring the decoder or tuner and nothing more. No subscription fees but you'd be able to watch satellite tv for free on your TV. It may not offer you exactly the same channels as your premium cable tv gives you but it can be entertaining.