BT says it's too soon to plan PL rights bid

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The UK telecommunication giant said it was too early to decide if it will bid for rights to Premier League football as it prepares to push into television over broadband. The Observer newspaper reported on Sunday that the telecoms group was planning to bid for the rights, which could anger BSkyB, the dominant satellite broadcaster which currently has an exclusive deal to air Premier League matches.

"There's no serious discussions that have been had," BT spokesman commented to media, although he did say that a bid could not be ruled out. "We're not at that stage, and we're certainly not going into any competition with Sky," the BT spokesman added. BT is planning a launch of its TV-over-broadband service in 2006.

European regulators have said that Sky will not be allowed to keep its exclusive rights when the current contract expires in 2007. A slew of rival broadcasters are expected to put in an offer, including cable companies NTL and Telewest, ITV, Irish broadcaster Setanta, and possibly the BBC.