The BBC is a public broadcaster, and its charter sets out the requirement for everything it does to meet a “public value test.” Ofcom, the independent regulator that oversees the BBC, is charged with “[making] sure that people in the UK get the best from their communications services and are protected from scams and sharp practices, while ensuring that competition can thrive”.

So what did Ofcom do? Naturally, it listened to the public, ignored the uncompetitive rent-seeking proposals from the commercial sector, adhered to EU law, and rejected the proposal.

Well, that’s what they did in a parallel universe. In this universe, Ofcom accepted the self-serving arguments of the companies they’re meant to be regulating, ignored the public whose interests they were meant to be safeguarding, and gave the BBC what it asked for.

Why did it do this? It’s a secret.

But not any more.