News

From Wasted Billions to National Rebirth: NBC Unveils Bold Plan to Rescue Nigerian Broadcasting

Published

2 weeks ago

April 9, 2026

Preport

For seventeen years, the promise of digital television in Nigeria has remained just that — an unfulfilled promise. Over ₦60 billion has been spent, yet the majority of Nigerians continue to receive analogue signals, while broadcasters operate in the dark, lacking reliable audience data.

On Tuesday, the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) finally addressed this long-standing failure with rare candour. In a presentation titled “The Big Picture,” the regulator acknowledged systemic breakdowns and outlined an ambitious, time-bound roadmap to realise a true digital future for Nigerian broadcasting.

Dr. Charles Ebuebu, Director General of the NBC, delivered the keynote speech to the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON) General Assembly with remarkable candour and clarity — a welcome change from the regulator’s usual tone.

FreeTV: A Genuine National Platform

The proposed solution, branded FreeTV, is not just an incremental tweak. It is a complete national digital broadcasting platform aimed at ensuring universal access.

100% national coverage through a hybrid satellite and IP delivery system
No encryption — completely free-to-air
A user-friendly mobile app for seamless viewing
A European-standard audience measurement system that will finally provide advertisers with accurate, credible viewership data

For the first 18 months, any broadcaster that signs on, commits to a minimum of 60% local content, and actively promotes the platform will broadcast for free. A regulated rate card will come into effect from January 2028.

The analogue switch-off date is firm: 31 December 2028 — with no further extensions planned.

Decentralising Storytelling and Creating Jobs

Beyond technology, the plan carries a bold cultural and economic vision. Six regional production hubs will be established to decentralise content creation and amplify local voices:

Lagos – Film and post-production
Kano – Hausa content
Enugu – Igbo language and culture
Benin – Edo heritage and South-South stories
Port Harcourt
Jos

Additional hubs are expected in other geopolitical zones.

The NBC believes that when compelling local stories reach national audiences with measurable viewership, both creative industry revenue and national cohesion will strengthen. Thousands of jobs are projected in production, technical, and creative roles.

Learning from Global Successes, Avoiding Past Failures

The strategy draws smartly from international benchmarks:

The public-private partnership model of the UK’s Freeview
South Africa’s surge in local content following its successful Digital Switchover (DSO)
Bulgaria’s proven GARB audience measurement system

Ghana’s stalled and politicised digital transition is explicitly cited as the mistake Nigeria must avoid.

A Clear Call to Action

Broadcasters now face a genuine opportunity. The NBC has removed almost every technical and financial barrier for the first 18 months. In return, it demands commitment: high local content quotas and active promotion of the platform.

The message from the podium was direct and powerful: “Your content. Our distribution. National reach.”

After years of false starts and wasted resources, Nigerian broadcasting finally has a firm finish line — and a ticking clock. As Dr Ebuebu declared, “The digital future will happen. The only question is whether you will lead it… or watch it from the sidelines.”

Background: Understanding Digital Switchover (DSO)

Digital Switchover (also known as Digital Television Transition or Analogue Switch-Off) is the global process of replacing analogue terrestrial television broadcasting with more efficient digital terrestrial television (DTT).

Key Benefits:

Superior picture and sound quality (including HD and UHD support)
More channels within the same spectrum
Lower transmission power and operational costs for broadcasters
Freeing up valuable “digital dividend” spectrum for mobile broadband and other services

Why the Switch Is Necessary: Analogue signals are spectrum-inefficient and outdated technically. Digital broadcasting is more resilient, supports interactive features like Electronic Programme Guides (EPGs), and provides better reception — including on portable and mobile devices. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) coordinated regional deadlines, with many countries aiming for 2015 under the GE06 Agreement.

During the transition, broadcasters typically simulcast(broadcast both analogue and digital signals) to allow gradual migration. Viewers with older analogue TVs require a digital set-top box (decoder) or a new digital television to continue receiving free-to-air channels. Cable, satellite, and IPTV services are generally unaffected as they were already digital.

Global Status: Most developed nations completed the transition years ago:

United States: Full-power analogue ended in 2009 (low-power extensions until 2022).
United Kingdom: Completed by 2012.
Many European and Asian countries followed in the 2010s.

Several African countries have faced delays due to infrastructure, funding, and awareness challenges. As of 2026, a few are still in progress or reviving earlier stalled projects.

Nigeria’s Journey Nigeria’s DSO efforts commenced around 2006–2012, with pilot projects in Jos (2016), Abuja, Kaduna, and Kwara. The country missed the original ITU-inspired 2015 deadline due to funding shortages, infrastructure gaps, limited technical capacity, and inconsistent government support.

As of early 2026, the project has been revived under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda. The NBC is partnering with Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT) on a hybrid terrestrial-satellite model to ensure true nationwide coverage, especially in remote areas.

Targeted Benefits for Nigeria:

Significantly more TV channels with superior quality
Freed spectrum for telecommunications growth
Economic boost for local content production and broadcasting
Improved access in underserved regions

Remaining Challenges:

Affordability of hybrid decoders/set-top boxes
Public awareness and sensitisation
Technical skills development
Ensuring no citizen is left behind during the switch

News

Deezer says 44% of songs uploaded to its platform daily are AI-generated

Published

1 hour ago

April 20, 2026

Preport

Deezer announced on Monday that AI-generated tracks now represent 44% of all new music uploaded to its platform. The company said it’s receiving almost 75,000 AI-generated tracks per day and more than two million per month.

The consumption of AI-generated music on the platform is still very low, at 1-3% of total streams, and 85% of these streams are detected as fraudulent and demonetized by the company.

The latest figure from Deezer highlights a continuous surge in AI-generated music uploads to the platform. Deezer reported receiving around 60,000 AI tracks per day in January, up from 50,000 in November, 30,000 in September, and just 10,000 in January 2025, when it first launched its AI-music detection tool.

Songs tagged as AI-generated on Deezer are automatically removed from algorithmic recommendations and not included in editorial playlists. The company announced today that it will no longer store hi-res versions of AI tracks.

The updated figure comes as an AI-generated track topped the iTunes charts last week in the United States, United Kingdom, France, Canada, and New Zealand.

“AI-generated music is now far from a marginal phenomenon and as daily deliveries keep increasing, we hope the whole music ecosystem will join us in taking action to help safeguard artists’ rights and promote transparency for fans,” said Deezer CEO Alexis Lanternier in a press release. “Thanks to our technology and the proactive measures we put in place more than a year ago, we have shown that it’s possible to reduce AI-related fraud and payment dilution in streaming to a minimum.”

Today’s announcement comes as Deezer conducted a survey last November that found that 97% of participants couldn’t tell the difference between fully AI-generated music and human-made music.

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The survey also found that 52% of respondents said 100% AI-generated songs shouldn’t be included in charts alongside human-made songs in the main charts. Meanwhile, 80% said 100% AI-generated music should be clearly labeled for listeners.

Deezer first started tagging AI tracks at the platform level in June 2025, becoming the first streaming platform to do so. Over the course of 2025, Deezer tagged more than 13.4 million AI tracks on its platform.

In February, French streaming service Qobuz announced plans to tag AI-generated content on its platform. Other major streaming services, such as Spotify and Apple Music, take different approaches to AI-generated music, often combining the use of filters to identify low-quality AI music with other transparency efforts left up to the distributors.

News

NiMet forecasts rainfall, sunshine nationwide

Published

4 hours ago

April 20, 2026

Preport

The Nigerian Meteorological Agency has predicted rainy and sunny weather nationwide from Monday to Wednesday.

‎‎NiMet’s weather outlook released on Sunday predicted sunny skies over the northern region on Monday morning, with a chance of thunderstorms.

‎‎NiMet anticipated moderate rains over parts of Taraba and Adamawa.

‎According to the agency, isolated thunderstorms with moderate rainfall are possible over parts of Bauchi, Gombe, Kaduna, Adamawa, and Taraba during the afternoon or evening hours.

‎‎For the North-Central region, a cloudy atmosphere with intervals of sunshine is anticipated during the morning hours, with a chance of isolated thunderstorms and moderate rainfall over Niger, Kogi, Kwara, and the FCT.

‎‎There is a risk of thunderstorms with moderate rainfall over parts of the Plateau, Kwara, Kogi, Benue, Niger, Nasarawa, and the Federal Capital Territory later in the day.

‎‎NiMet envisaged a cloudy atmosphere over the southern region during the morning hours, with a chance of isolated thunderstorms and moderate rainfall over parts of Abia, Enugu, Edo, Rivers, Bayelsa, Cross River, and Akwa Ibom.

‎‎The agency predicted isolated thunderstorms accompanied by moderate rains over parts of Oyo, Ebonyi, Enugu, Abia, Osun, Ekiti, Anambra, Ondo, Ogun, Edo, Imo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Lagos, Cross River and Akwa Ibom later in the day.

‎‎NiMet forecasted sunny skies over the northern region during the morning hours on Tuesday.

‎According to the agency, there is a possibility of thunderstorms accompanied by moderate rainfall over parts of Kaduna, Adamawa and Taraba during the afternoon and evening hours.

‎‎The agency predicted a cloudy atmosphere in the North-Central region, with intervals of sunshine in the morning.‎

There is a risk of thunderstorms accompanied by moderate rainfall over parts of Benue, the Federal Capital Territory, Kogi, Nasarawa, and Plateau during the afternoon or evening hours.

‎‎For the southern region, a cloudy atmosphere is anticipated during the morning hours, with a chance of isolated thunderstorms and light rains over parts of Enugu, Imo, Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa, Cross River, and Akwa Ibom.

‎‎There is a possibility of isolated thunderstorms accompanied by moderate rainfall over parts of Bayelsa, Rivers, Delta, Cross River, and Akwa Ibom States during the afternoon or evening hours.

‎‎NiMet predicted sunny skies over the northern region during the morning hours on Wednesday. ‎‎It anticipated thunderstorms, with or without rain, over parts of Borno, Gombe, Taraba, and Adamawa.

‎‎The agency predicted isolated thunderstorms accompanied by moderate rains over parts of Kaduna, Gombe, Bauchi, Taraba and Adamawa later in the day.

NiMet predicted a cloudy atmosphere in the North-Central region, with intervals of sunshine anticipated during the morning hours.

‎‎There is a possibility of isolated thunderstorms with moderate rainfall over parts of Plateau, Nasarawa, Kogi, Niger, Benue, and the Federal Capital Territory during the afternoon or evening hours.

‎For the southern region, a cloudy atmosphere with intervals of sunshine is anticipated during the morning hours.

Later in the day, thunderstorms with moderate rains are expected over the entire southern region.

‎‎NiMet urged the public to take adequate precautions and ensure that loose objects are secured to prevent collisions, as strong winds may precede rainfall in areas where thunderstorms are likely.

(NAN)