The spat between Virgin Media and BSkyB took another turn yesterday when Virgin Media launched a High-Court action accusing Sky of breaching the 1998 UK Competition Act.

Virgin had threatened to see Sky in court if its rival didn't back down on pricing within 30 days: Sky has always said it would be happy to return to the negotiating table at any time; but there's a big difference between being willing to negotiate and being willing to concede anything.

The 30 days ran out last Wednesday, with Sky calling Virgin in the expectation of a bluff, but it now seems Virgin is prepared to go all the way. ®

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