Stop the Dirty Digger

Rupert's played a blinder.

All the morons in the papers and TV are getting their knickers in a twist because Murdoch has bought a minority share in ITV. They think this is a prelude to him taking over ITV. What they fail to realise is that even the lax British media ownership laws prevent Murdoch from owning ITV outright.

This brilliant move is not about Murdoch taking over ITV. This simple, but masterful, move is merely about preventing any his rivals from taking over ITV and challenging his dominance of the British media. As a minority shareholder Murdoch will be able to veto anyone buying ITV outright.

Murdoch has not become by one of the world's leading, if not the leading, media moguls by providing superior products or services. He has done this by eliminating any competition, by fair or foul means.

In 1990 he forced British Satellite Broadcasting to "merge" with his Sky TV creating what we now know as BSkyB. This gave him a monopoly on satellite TV and a virtual monopoly on pay TV in Britain.

In 2002 he forced ITV Digital into bankruptcy using both legal and illegal methods. He prevented the ITV Sports channel, on whose success the future of ITV Digital rested, from broadcasting on his Sky Digital platform. This denied ITV Sports the millions of subscribers it needed in order to pay for the Football League TV rights. He also used his contacts in the criminal world to crack ITV Digital's encryption technology. By eliminating ITV Digital Murdoch had rid himself of a serious competitor in the pay TV market.

Then, by conspiring with the BBC to create Freeview, the successor to ITV Digital, he ensured that there would never again be any serious pay TV on terrestrial TV.

And now, by buying this minority stake in ITV, he has ensured that NTL-Telewest-Virgin-ITV isn't a threat to BSkyB.

Richard Branson has rightly complained to Ofcom but don't expect those gutless wonders to do anything. They will probably pass the buck to the government. It's time to call in the favours Rupert...