Executive Head, Content and Channels West Africa, MultiChoice Nigeria, Atinuke Babatunde, on Friday raised concern over the growing rate of digital piracy in the country, disclosing that the last season of Big Brother Naija (BBNaija) recorded over five million illegal streams and cloned accounts.
Babatunde revealed this at the 2025 Nigerian Entertainment Conference (NECLive), which had stakeholders from different sectors come together to discuss the theme, “Powering Africa Through Creative Enterprise”.
She said the scale of the infringement reflected a significant economic loss to the creative sector. “Africa loses billions to piracy,” she said. “The last BBNaija season we recorded over 5 million illegal streams and cloned accounts. This is not mischief; it’s theft, and it is economic sabotage that must be stopped.”
Babatunde called for stronger legal and enforcement measures to curb the problem. According to her, outdated copyright regulations and weak cross-border protections have made it difficult to tackle digital piracy effectively. “We need modern copyright laws, enforcement frameworks and cross-border protections,” she said.
Her comments come as MultiChoice has, in recent weeks, embarked on a series of anti-piracy walks across major cities to raise awareness on the impact of illegal streaming and content theft on the industry.
Babatunde said the creative sector remained a key driver of economic growth and must be protected. “When creativity rises, the entire economy rises. When African stories travel, African industry grows. When African creators thrive, Africans thrive,” she said.
She urged stakeholders to take collective action to safeguard the continent’s creative output. “This is our moment not to dream but to build, not to respond but to lead, not to wait but to act,” she added. “The continent’s creative century has already begun; let’s make sure Africa owns it.”