News Corporation takeover bid for BSkyB Italia. "The Guardian" went so far as to say that, "Without a full takeover of BSkyB, News Corp's global satellite strategy would look an unco-ordinated mess." The first key turning point in the planned takeover was the removal in December 2010 of regulatory approval from Vince Cable, who had told undercover reporters from "The Daily Telegraph" he had "declared war" on Murdoch. When these comments were made public, the final say on the deal went instead to Jeremy Hunt. Cable's comments on this matter were not published by the "Telegraph", but were instead leaked to BBC journalist Robert Peston, most
News Corporation takeover bid for BSkyB launch, the campaign gained the support of suspected hacking victim, the actor Hugh Grant, who became a public spokesperson, appearing on "Question Time" and "Newsnight." In July 2011, during the News International phone hacking scandal, BSkyB shares plummeted and Hunt received well over 150,000 submissions from members of the public, driven by efforts by campaign groups Avaaz.org and 38 Degrees. Most submissions were opposed to News Corp taking full control of BSkyB. News Corp subsequently withdrew undertakings made as part of negotiations with the government, triggering an immediate referral of the proposal to the Competition Commission. Numerous analysts and commentators