USwitch.com - the UK-based utilities comparison web site - could be up for sale, according to The Times.

It reports that the privately-owned independent business is understood to have slipped a 'for sale' sign outside the business. Analysts reckon the business could be worth around £100m, says the paper.

Free for consumers to use, uSwitch.com enables punters to compare different utility services - such as gas, electricity, home phone, broadband providers and personal finance products - to get the best deal.

USwitch.com was asked to comment but no one had returned calls at the time of writing.

Yesterday, regulator Ofcom published its draft annual plan which outlines the work it intends to carry out next year. A major plank of that is the regulator's desire to make switching telcos and ISPs much easier for consumers who want to chop and change to get the very best deals around.

GUS - which owns Argos and Experian - splashed out $485m to acquire US price comparison web site PriceGrabber.com. ®

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• uSwitch cans IT workers (18 September 2007)
• uSwitch.com switched for £210m (16 March 2006)
• USwitch calls in advisors to prep sale (20 January 2006)
• Consumers to get better deal, says Ofcom (14 December 2005)
• GUS hands over $485m for PriceGrabber.com (14 December 2005)
• Switching telcos/ISPs to get easier (25 November 2005)
• Argos pulls 49p TV deal (1 September 2005)
• Ofcom 'fails to support consumers' over mobile charges (7 June 2005)
• BT sneaks in 'stealth price rise' (5 January 2005)
• uSwitch unveils broadband service checker (8 November 2004)