DSTV and GOTV: Customers complain about poor service quality and exorbitant prices

Customers of Multichoice are increasingly frustrated with the poor quality of services offered by the company, resorting to all possible means to complain and report the situation. Consumer rights entities acknowledge receiving numerous complaints about Multichoice's services, and the National Communications Institute of Mozambique (INCM) has informed that a complaint line has been established to address such issues.

Several customers of Multichoice Mozambique report significant challenges related to the quality of services provided by the company, with the main complaints being system outages or "Blackouts," even after package payments have been made. These issues affect both DStv and GOtv, both of which are owned by Multichoice.

According to complaints heard and compiled by TORRE.News, some customers have been without a signal on their decoders for over a week, despite having paid for their packages. This problem has been brought to the attention of the Association for the Study and Defense of Consumer Rights (ProConsumers), which claims to have received several similar complaints regarding the services provided by Multichoice.

ProConsumers President, Francisco Lichucha, recommends that customers affected by this situation present evidence such as payment receipts to formalize their complaint. "The customer must present proof of payment and specify the package paid for," he stated, adding that these complaints are then formalized and forwarded to the INCM, the body responsible for regulating communication services in the country.

The INCM confirmed to TORRE.News that it has established a customer contact mechanism and a complaint line specifically to address situations like this. However, the institution did not disclose the exact number of complaints related to customer dissatisfaction with Multichoice's services that have been forwarded to the entity.

This issue with Multichoice services in Mozambique has thus become a cost-benefit equation without justification. Some customers report being without service for about five consecutive days and are considering abandoning the service.

"I recharged three days ago, but I have no images," wrote a customer in a comment on a post made on the DStv Mozambique page. In response, DStv expressed regret for the situation and recommended that the customer send a photo of the notification appearing on the screen, accompanied by an advertising suggestion. "You, rich as you are, don't care about solving our problems anymore; you just recommend apps. Every month I complain about the same thing; you can't be like this (...)," the customer replied, showing apparent frustration.

Other customers made similar comments, such as "DStv, I recharged, but no channel is available" and "Good afternoon, I recharged, but no channel comes up (...). Please boost the signal," without receiving a response from the company so far.

TORRE.News attempted to contact Multichoice Mozambique for clarification on the actions being taken to address consumer complaints, but as of the time of publication, no response had been obtained.

It is worth noting that Multichoice charges significantly higher tariffs in Mozambique, a clear disparity, even compared to neighboring countries like South Africa and Eswatini. In a previous statement, the company justified the cost of its packages in Mozambique by citing operational issues, including the acquisition of content in Portuguese.