The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Communications and ICT, Peter Akpatason, has said MTN Nigeria has addressed misconceptions surrounding the alleged unexplained depletion of subscribers’ mobile data through a public engagement on data consumption and billing.

Akpatason made the remarks at an event tagged “Data on Trial”, organised by MTN Nigeria in Abuja to examine customers’ complaints about data bundles running out faster than expected.

He said the engagement helped clarify how data was consumed and the measures subscribers could take to prevent unnecessary usage.

The lawmaker explained that some customers believed their data disappeared without being used, but demonstrations at the event showed that phone settings and applications could consume data without users being fully aware of the activity.

He also said discussions at the event addressed perceptions that mobile data was more expensive in Nigeria than in other countries, adding that the engagement provided an opportunity to examine such claims and improve public understanding of the telecommunications industry.

Akpatason described telecommunications as one of Nigeria’s major investment sectors outside oil and encouraged further investment to support growth and improve services.

The Chief Executive Officer of MTN Nigeria, Karl Toriola, said the company organised the event in response to customers’ concerns about data consumption and the explanations provided by operators.

He said MTN wanted subscribers and other stakeholders to question its practices openly, adding that transparency and consumer education were essential to rebuilding trust.

Toriola said the initiative was intended to improve public understanding of how data was measured, billed and consumed across telecommunications networks.

MTN’s General Manager of Network Performance and Quality Assurance, Michael Ndukwe, explained that several factors could influence data consumption, including smartphone models, screen resolution, video quality, applications and location-related network conditions.

He identified high-resolution video streaming, automatic downloads, background applications and cloud backups as activities that could exhaust data bundles even when users were not actively browsing.

Applications such as TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and WhatsApp can consume different amounts of data depending on their settings and how frequently users access videos and other media.

Ndukwe said subscribers could reduce consumption by disabling automatic downloads, lowering video-streaming quality, restricting background data and activating data-saving features on their devices.

He also advised users to monitor their consumption through their network providers’ applications and review settings that allow applications to download content automatically.

Another MTN technical representative, David Ogunsola, explained that data usage figures displayed on mobile devices could differ from measurements recorded by telecommunications networks.

He said device-level measurements generally reflected application usage, while network measurements could include additional data exchanged between applications, servers and other components during online activities.

The technical team also noted that faster network connections could encourage users to access content at higher resolutions, increasing data consumption depending on their settings and browsing habits.

The discussions highlighted the need for clearer communication between telecommunications operators and subscribers, particularly when customers question deductions from their data balances.

Despite the explanations presented at the event, concerns about unexplained data depletion remain an important consumer issue, underscoring the need for transparent billing information and accessible complaint-resolution procedures.

Subscribers who notice discrepancies are encouraged to request detailed usage records from their service providers. Those who remain dissatisfied with the explanations can escalate their complaints to the Nigerian Communications Commission.

The event brought together industry representatives, lawmakers, technology experts and other stakeholders to discuss data management, pricing, consumer awareness and investment in telecommunications infrastructure.