President Bola Tinubu has authorised a comprehensive investigation into major global technology companies and generative artificial intelligence platforms over allegations involving the unauthorised use of Nigerian news content and other potentially anti-competitive practices.

The inquiry will be conducted by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) following a petition submitted by the Nigerian Press Organisation (NPO), an umbrella body representing newspaper publishers, broadcasters, journalists and online news publishers. The petition raises concerns about how global digital platforms use and monetise locally produced journalistic content.

According to the FCCPC, the investigation will examine allegations involving major technology companies, including Meta, Alphabet (Google), X and several generative AI platforms operating in Nigeria. Regulators will assess whether their activities violate the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018 or any other applicable laws.

The commission explained that the probe will focus on claims of market dominance, anti-competitive behaviour and the alleged unauthorised extraction, scraping, ingestion and commercial use of copyrighted Nigerian news articles, broadcast materials and other original journalistic works for training artificial intelligence models. It will also examine complaints that Nigerian media organisations have been denied fair opportunities to negotiate compensation for the use of their content.

FCCPC Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Tunji Bello, stressed that the investigation should not be interpreted as a declaration of guilt against any of the companies involved.

“We recognise the strategic importance of the media to Nigeria’s democracy and the equally significant role of technology in driving innovation and economic growth. Our responsibility is to objectively determine the facts and ensure that competition within the digital ecosystem remains fair, transparent, and consistent with Nigerian law.”

He further clarified:

“This inquiry is not directed at any entity by presumption of wrongdoing. Rather, it is an opportunity to carefully examine the facts, hear from all affected parties, and determine whether any conduct has resulted in anti-competitive outcomes or unfair business practices.”

He added:

“Every party will be accorded a fair opportunity to present relevant information before any conclusions are reached. In specific terms, FCCPC will determine whether the practices in question constitute a breach of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018 or any other applicable law.”

The investigation comes amid growing global scrutiny of the relationship between digital platforms, artificial intelligence developers and news publishers. Several countries have introduced regulatory measures requiring technology companies to negotiate compensation agreements with media organisations for the use of journalistic content. Nigerian regulators say the outcome of the investigation could shape the future of digital competition, copyright protection and the sustainability of the country’s media industry.