EU will probe News Corp’s bid for BSkyB November 3, 2010 NEWS Corp has officially notified the European Commission about its intention to take full control of BSkyB. Business secretary Vince Cable will now be among those who decide whether the £8bn buyout will be allowed to go ahead. The Commission now has 25 working days to conduct an initial probe, after which it can launch [...]
The dining scene is hotting up this winter November 3, 2010 AGAINST the odds perhaps, but 2010 has been a cracking year for restaurant openings in London. From the old-fashioned cool of Soho’s Dean Street Townhouse to Pierre Koffmann’s return to glory, the cosy joy that is Polpo to Daniel Boulud’s Knightsbridge bistro, there’s been plenty to love. And if anything, the openings are accelerating. The [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS November 2, 2010 Ernst & Young The accountancy firm has hired Samantha Keen to join its restructuring practice as a partner, working with the liquidations and strategic exit routes (LASER) team. Keen has over 18 years of experience in the insolvency and restructuring arena, and has recently focused on advising clients about solvent reorganisation and legal entity rationalisation [...]
Ministers to reveal high speed rail link winner October 31, 2010 THE government is this week set to unveil the winner of a contest to buy the high-speed rail link from London to the Channel Tunnel for up to £2bn. Ministers will pick one of four consortia vying for the 68-mile line, used by Eurostar trains between London St Pancras, Paris and Brussels as well as high-speed [...]
WI-FI HITS UNDERGROUND October 28, 2010 CUSTOMERS will be able to log on to the internet from their laptops or mobile phones at Charing Cross Tube Station from 1 November through BT Openzone. The trial, which will test how the service works and look at customer take up, will include live Transport for London service updates available to all wi-fi users [...]
CITY VIEWS: WHAT WILL ONE NEW CHANGE MEAN FOR THE CITY? October 28, 2010 MARK WEBSTER | BT “It means I won’t have to spend my weekends shopping, as I can do it all in my lunch break. It’s interesting to see such a large project in these economic times, but from the crowds today it seems like it will be used.” JANDRE ELS | REDSTONE “It’s quite a [...]
Virgin media nets more money per user October 27, 2010 Cable operator Virgin Media added fewer net new customers in the third quarter than expected but managed to extract record sums from each user. Virgin Media, which competes in Britain with BT and BSkyB in the provision of broadband, telephony and pay-TV, said it had added 14,100 net new customers in the period ending September, [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING October 25, 2010 FIANACIAL TIMES DEBT MARKETS TAKE UNUSUAL TURN The abnormal state of credit markets came into focus yesterday as the US Treasury sold bonds with negative interest rates for the first time and Goldman Sachs prepared to sell its first 50-year debt deal. Both sales highlighted the difficult choices facing investors at a time when interest [...]
BT doubles its apprentice scheme as demand surges October 25, 2010 COMPETITION to become Alan Sugar’s apprentice may be fierce, but it is nothing compared to the fight to become a BT apprentice. While contestants on the BBC show must fight off just 15 other candidates, graduates hoping to work at the former state telecoms provider have 24,000 to worry about. The demand for places is [...]
Taxpayers will pay if BT fails October 21, 2010 TAXPAYERS will have to stump up a staggering £23bn to BT’s pension trustees if the telecoms giant ever goes bust. A landmark ruling yesterday means even BT workers who joined after the firm was privatised in 1984 will have their pension liabilities covered. The ruling will increase the government’s contingent liability but will not affect [...]