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The Nigerian government has directed the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to investigate major global technology companies and Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) platforms over allegations of anti-competitive practices and the unlawful use of content belonging to Nigerian media organisations.
The directive followed a joint petition submitted to the Presidency by the Nigerian Press Organisation (NPO), comprising the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria (NPAN), the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON) and the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP).
According to a statement issued on Monday by the FCCPC’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Ondaje Ijagwu, the investigation will focus on companies including Meta, Alphabet (Google’s parent company), X (formerly Twitter) and selected Generative AI platforms operating in Nigeria.
RELEASE: President Tinubu Directs FCCPC to Investigate Big Techs pic.twitter.com/JBZtsxoc0c
— FCCPC Nigeria (@fccpcnigeria) July 6, 2026
The commission said the media organisations alleged that the technology firms’ activities undermine fair competition, threaten the financial sustainability of Nigerian media organisations, and violate the rights of content creators and publishers.
The FCCPC noted that the investigation will examine allegations of anti-competitive conduct, abuse of market dominance and the unauthorised extraction, scraping, ingestion and commercial use of copyrighted news articles, broadcast materials and other journalistic content to develop and train Generative AI models.
The commission will also investigate complaints that Nigerian publishers have been denied fair opportunities to negotiate compensation and commercial agreements for the use of their content.
The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the FCCPC, Tunji Bello, said the investigation would be conducted independently, transparently and based strictly on evidence.
According to him, the inquiry is not based on any presumption of wrongdoing but is intended to establish the facts and determine whether any company has engaged in anti-competitive or unfair business practices in violation of Nigerian law. Bello assured all affected parties that they would be given a fair opportunity to present relevant information before any conclusions are reached.
The FCCPC said it would determine whether the practices under investigation violate the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018, or any other applicable legislation.
The commission noted that similar concerns have prompted regulatory action in other countries, including South Africa, where investigations by the competition regulator led to an agreement requiring Google to compensate news publishers for the use of their content.
The latest investigation comes less than a year after the FCCPC secured a court judgment against Meta over alleged violations of Nigeria’s competition and consumer protection laws, including data privacy breaches, resulting in a $220 million penalty, which the company has appealed.
The probe signals the Nigerian Government’s determination to ensure that global technology companies operating in the country comply with local laws and that Nigerian media organisations receive fair compensation for the content that supports the digital information ecosystem.
