MTN Nigeria has blamed fast data depletion on video streaming, automatic downloads, background apps, cloud backups and other internet activities, rejecting claims that telecom operators deliberately deduct customers’ data.
Speaking at the “Data on Trial” forum in Abuja on Monday, held alongside the 32nd Nigerian Economic Summit, MTN’s General Manager of Network Performance, Mike Ndukwe, said phone settings and user activities largely determine data consumption.
“We’re not stealing your data. However, we completely understand how it feels, especially right now, where every amount counts. But the honest answer is that data is not taken without an action, either your action or your phone,” he said.
Ndukwe explained that TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and WhatsApp consume different amounts of data depending on video quality, automatic playback and downloads. A 15-second TikTok video can use between two and 20 megabytes.
He said WhatsApp messages use little data, but videos, status updates, group messages and automatic downloads can quickly exhaust subscriptions.
“If your WhatsApp is set on auto-download, straight away it hits your data bundle. And that is where you can optimise some of your settings,” Ndukwe noted.
He disclosed that WhatsApp has about 45 million Nigerian users and said data consumption had risen by approximately 43 per cent year-on-year. He advised subscribers to lower video quality, disable automatic downloads and track usage with the MyMTN app.
MTN’s General Manager of IT Operations, David Ogunsola, said differences between phone records and network charges could result from measurement methods, background traffic and session timing.
“The data that you measure on your devices is slightly different from what traverses over the network and what’s on the charge,” he said.
Ogunsola said such differences could range from two to 12 per cent. He added that 3G and 4G affect connection speed, while apps and video quality determine data usage.
MTN CEO Karl Toriola cited electricity and site maintenance costs, saying operators provide power and transportation for their sites.
“Please understand that this country, as well as a few other African countries, we are providing power and transportation to all of our sites,” he said.
He added that Nigerian operators use equipment comparable to that in Europe and the United States but face higher operating costs, especially for electricity. MTN is also increasing consumer education on data management.
Xiaomi Nigeria’s Northwest Sales Manager, Kevin Kojode, blamed unexpected data loss on software updates, cloud syncing, background apps and unrestricted hotspot connections.
“Today, users don’t just go online, they stay online,” Kojode said.
He advised users to restrict updates to Wi-Fi, set data limits, monitor hotspots and lower streaming quality. He also highlighted phone features that help users track usage and control data sharing.
