FG orders TV, radio stations to encrypt broadcast signals

The federal government has ordered all broadcasters transmitting Free-To-Air satellite services in the country to encrypt all the broadcasting signals on their platform. A statement by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) said this is to guard against the infiltration of unwholesome content by criminals from within and outside the country. NBC mgt holds first meeting […]

The federal government has ordered all broadcasters transmitting Free-To-Air satellite services in the country to encrypt all the broadcasting signals on their platform.

A statement by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) said this is to guard against the infiltration of unwholesome content by criminals from within and outside the country.

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“The Commission has monitored in recent times the transmission of Free-To-Air satellite signals with unwholesome content into the country,” the statement which was signed on Thursday by NBC’s Assistant Director of Public Affairs Antia Ekanem said.

It said some of the channels broadcasting illegally into the country seek to threaten Nigeria’s core values and deliberately seek to undermine its unity and peace.

It said: “Section (2) of the National Broadcasting Commission Act CAP N11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, states, “No person shall operate or use any apparatus or premises for the transmission of sound or vision by cable, television, radio, satellite or any other medium of broadcast from anywhere in Nigeria except under and in accordance with the provisions of this act.

“In view of this, all broadcasters transmitting Free-To-Air satellite services MUST encrypt all broadcasting signals on their platform.”

The NBC also directed all Pay TV channels to observe the rules on decency of broadcast content.

Many Pay TV channels, it said, carry very vulgar, indecent, and obscene contents.

“The Commission warns that unclassified, vulgar and obscene musical videos will not be tolerated, henceforth”, it said.