Fans call foul on Sky's Man U bid

TAKEOVER REGULATORS have put BSkyB's bid for Manchester United into extra time following a flood of complaints from fans, it emerged yesterday. The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has extended the consideration period for the bid by 15 days to 2 November.

BSkyB's pounds 623m bid was launched in September and accepted by the football club's board. The Trade and Industry Secretary, Peter Mandelson, said shortly after the deal was announced that the Office of Fair Trading would consider whether the bid should be referred to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission (MMC).

Extensions to the consideration period by the OFT are quite common, observers said.