BT Satelite

BT boss: 'We want to bring sports back to fans'

Ian Livingston is on ebullient form in his office at the top of BT headquarters by St Paul’s Cathedral. The 48-year-old Scot has just presented his company’s strongest annual results for several years and sent it headlong into battle with BSkyB with the commercial launch of BT Sport, its £1bn per year television venture.

Investors are impressed and have sent BT shares up more than 10pc by the time he sits down on Friday afternoon.

“We thought the City would be a bit concerned that this means price wars and aggression, but I think there’s a recognition that you can see in how the share price has reacted that this was BT taking a great offer to the customer from our own territory,” Livingston says.

That territory, as he sees it, is broadband. Until it unveiled its three sports channels on Thursday, BT had closely guarded the secret that it would offer them for “free” to its broadband subscribers despite the hefty £736m price it paid for live Premier League football.