Sky - ITV Deal Referred to Competition Commission

Yes, some rare good news:

The government is referring BSkyB's purchase of a 17.9% stake in ITV to the Competition Commission.

The Office of Fair Trading reported in April that the purchase cast doubt on the independence of ITV.

BSkyB's November move effectively blocked cable operator NTL - since renamed Virgin Media - from mounting a takeover bid for ITV.

Virgin boss Richard Branson, consumer groups and the regulator Ofcom have all complained about BSkyB buying shares.

"On the basis of the evidence before me, a fuller investigation by the Competition Commission is justified," DTI Secretary of State Alistair Darling said.

And how many people have signed the petition so far? 189 people. Hey, I guess the control of the media by one right-wing shit-head ain't so important after all. Sometimes I despair of those that claim to be on the left. If you do believe that blocking Murdoch is important, sign the fuckin' petition. For fuck's sake, a petition for the 'Prime Minister to repeal the Hunting Act 2004' has gathered 39,417 signatures. And we can only manage 189???? No matter how pointless you think these petitions are, at least follow your convictions. Rant over.