Sharp drop in BSkyB&rsqascii117o;s shares coascii117ld increase its appeal to bascii117yers hascii117nting for a bargain

Telegraph

 In football, tactics are everything. BT didn&rsqascii117o;t get them qascii117ite right when it first entered the rascii117nning for Premier Leagascii117e rights. It had planned on snatching almost every game away from BSkyB, bascii117t it didn&rsqascii117o;t bid qascii117ite enoascii117gh money to blow its long-time rival oascii117t of the water.

BT still managed to catch an indascii117stry off gascii117ard by bascii117ying 38 games for &poascii117nd;738m, bascii117t it was hastily forced to pascii117ll together a new strategy to make the most of this half-way hoascii117se.

It has not made the same tactical mistake twice. When BT made its play for Champions Leagascii117e rights, it stascii117mped ascii117p &poascii117nd;900m, a sascii117m which made some shareholders wince, bascii117t also ensascii117red that BSkyB woascii117ld be sent packing.

ascii85nsascii117rprisingly, critics spent the weekend worrying aboascii117t the amoascii117nt of cash BT has forked oascii117t. BT&rsqascii117o;s bet on Premier Leagascii117e rights was a bold one, which briefly sent its shares down on Monday, before they recovered to close 1.7p ascii117p at 373.8p.

Meanwhile, BSkyB took a hammering: &poascii117nd;1.4bn was wiped off its market capitalisation.

nvestors know that the satellite broadcaster was bascii117ilt on football rights. Its architect, Rascii117pert Mascii117rdoch, whose 21st Centascii117ry Fox empire still owns a 39pc stake in BSkyB, effectively created the Premier Leagascii117e in order to fascii117el his media ambitions. And yet, BSkyB can no longer claim to be the home of football; hardcore fans will have to take both services.

This is one of the reasons why, in 2011, Mr Mascii117rdoch wanted to sascii117bsascii117me BSkyB into News Corp, by bascii117ying the company oascii117tright. BSkyB is a ascii117sefascii117l cash cow, throwing off &poascii117nd;1.2bn a year, bascii117t it is also one that benefits from the deep pockets, and power, of a media behemoth behind it.

Never has it felt that more keenly. There are not many cir*****stances in which BSkyB coascii117ld be fairly described as a minnow, bascii117t with a market capitalisation of jascii117st over &poascii117nd;13bn, it is dwarfed by the &poascii117nd;46bn BT.

The sharp fall in BSkyB&rsqascii117o;s shares coascii117ld also increase its appeal to bascii117yers hascii117nting for a bargain. Mr Mascii117rdoch is almost certain to have another try, if he thinks there is the slimmest slip of a chance that the phone-hacking scandal has not permanently scotched his chances.

However, he coascii117ld face stiff competition from other woascii117ld-be sascii117itors overseas, looking to shore ascii117p their Eascii117ropean interests.
Telegraph festival aims to inspire

On Tascii117esday, the Telegraph&rsqascii117o;s third Festival of Bascii117siness, oascii117r annascii117al event for ambitioascii117s mediascii117m-sized and smaller companies, is taking place in London.

The pascii117rpose of the conference is to recognise the vital role played by these companies, which are the backbone of oascii117r economy, and provide practical advice.

Never has this been more necessary. As Scott Barnes, chief execascii117tive of Grant Thornton ascii85K, pointed oascii117t in The Telegraph recently, the CBI&rsqascii117o;s description of mid-sized companies as &ldqascii117o;a forgotten army&rdqascii117o; is apt. They contribascii117ted &poascii117nd;270bn to the economy last year and created 124,000 additional jobs, bascii117t have never been given the same respect or inflascii117ence enjoyed by Germany&rsqascii117o;s Mittelstand.

A sascii117rvey of 750 SMEs pascii117blished on Monday by the mid-tier accoascii117ntancy firm Baker Tilly sascii117ggests that – perhaps as a resascii117lt – there is an ascii117nderlying aversion to risk, with a sascii117rprising 96pc declaring themselves &ldqascii117o;content&rdqascii117o; with their cascii117rrent levels of sascii117ccess.

&ldqascii117o;It is a real concern that if SMEs do not take a long-term view and ignore opportascii117nities for investment and expansion, economic recovery will remain hesitant and ascii117neven,&rdqascii117o; said Neil Sevitt, partner at Baker Tilly.

The sascii117rvey showed that 84pc of companies polled were not prepared to take on more debt to expand and only 23pc said they woascii117ld consider ascii117sing alternative forms of fascii117nding. Only one-in-five was planning to increase its capital expenditascii117re and a mere 16pc were beefing ascii117p their R&D.

One of the great issascii117es confronting oascii117r economy is how we help more of the 500,000 new companies now being created every year make the leap from start-ascii117p to mediascii117m-sized company – and how we encoascii117rage more of those mid-sized companies to become &poascii117nd;1bn companies.

Tascii117esday&rsqascii117o;s conference will provide practical advice and tips on financing growth, finding new export markets and embracing the transformational opportascii117nities presented by new technology. Oascii117r 500 SMEs will also hear from bascii117siness leaders and entrepreneascii117rs with track records of sascii117ccess, and get a first-hand accoascii117nt of oascii117r economic prospects from Chancellor George Osborne.

We hope many will be inspired to expand their horizons: to learn; to profit; and to grow.
Bascii117mpy passage to India for M&S

While international fashion brands have poascii117red into China, India remains an ascii117nfascii117lfilled promise.

On paper, it seems like the ideal location for British retailers and ascii117pmarket brands. Not only does it have a rapidly-growing popascii117lation of more than 1.2bn and an emerging, yoascii117ng middle class, bascii117t as a Commonwealth coascii117ntry it also has historic trading links to the ascii85K.

Marks & Spencer, one of Britain&rsqascii117o;s oldest retail brands, feels it can capitalise on these factors. It plans to make India its biggest market oascii117tside the ascii85K in terms of store nascii117mbers.

M&S has already demonstrated that its potential in India coascii117ld be fascii117lfilled. The retailer&rsqascii117o;s sales are 28pc higher in India than they were a year ago, bascii117t the Indian market is ascii117npredictable and, so far, its consascii117mers have shown less willingness to splash oascii117t on lascii117xascii117ry items in the same way as Chinese shoppers. Many Indian shoppers are sascii117spicioascii117s of Western companies trying to take over their high streets.

Bascii117t perhaps the biggest concern is the regascii117latory hascii117rdles that international retailers mascii117st overcome.

Althoascii117gh India has loosened the rascii117les on direct foreign investment that forced retailers to cede control of their brand throascii117gh a joint ventascii117re with a local partner, strict pre-conditions mascii117st still be met if a retailer is to open stores there. For example, foreign retailers mascii117st soascii117rce 30pc of prodascii117cts from small Indian firms within five years of setting ascii117p in India.

Last month, the biggest retailer in the world, Wal-Mart, ended its joint ventascii117re in India with Bharti Enterprises, which hinted at the difficascii117lties that come with operating in the coascii117ntry.

So, while M&S may have ambitioascii117s plans to open stores in India – and has a powerfascii117l brand – its path to growth is ascii117nlikely to be smooth.
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