The broadcaster could fetch more than 1 billion pounds ($1.4 billion) if the government removed some of its public service obligations and provided more clarity about what regulation would look like in the coming years, according to Claire Enders.

Alice said “Regulation is there to solve the problem of the market not functioning. In this country it has not been used for the government to regulate the content of drama.” 

Tom called the proposal to privatise Channel 4 “potentially spiteful”, a move that ignored the role the broadcaster played in British public service broadcasting of nurturing new talent. “It is akin to altering an organ, with very little understanding what effect it will have on the rest of the body.”

Francois said “Every time Amazon increases its presence in a related field, it sends back the image of a machine that needs to be stopped, but it’s more of a political issue than a competition one."

He added “It is difficult to say that the development of Amazon Prime Video with sports and TV shows is anti-competitive in itself."

James said Vodafone was “taking quite a conservative approach” by choosing Samsung and NEC, “who are significant players globally but have struggled in Europe, as opposed to newer specialists such as Airspan."

Drahi’s intervention illustrates the issues at BT. The company was traditionally what James Barford, telecoms expert at the media analyst Enders, described as a “steady-as-you-go yield stock."

James said “With the pension fund, the legal documents, the contracts and due diligence you are talking a long period of time.”