MTN is asking Nigerians to trust it with their entertainment hours on a network that the company itself cannot guarantee. It is launching a data-intensive service in an era when its own data pricing has attracted national protests and a public forum called 'Data on Trial.' Content is not the supporting act. Content is the whole show. And MTN has not told us what it plans to put on stage.

Long before streaming platforms and premium mall cinemas, African entertainment thrived in communal environments. Storytelling happened in village squares, music was experienced in open gatherings, and public screenings of football matches remain one of the continent’s most popular social experiences today.