The Year the Monopolies and Mergers Commission Examined the Industry

In 1985 BET attempted a hostile takeover bid of SGB. Although ultimately unsuccessful this bid caused widespread concerns about a potential monopoly amongst access suppliers. The government imposed a six-month moratorium whilst the Monopolies Commission examined the market and their report gave a great deal of information about various sectors of the access market. One of the sectors analysed was the tower sales market. So, in March 1986 the size of the market in 1984 was estimated by the government as follows:

SGB                                  £2.8m    22.2%

BET                                 £2.2m   17.5%

Other Suppliers            £7.6m   60.3%

Total market Size         £12.6m

Its not often that an industry has its size officially calculated by a government!