GIVEN the avalanche of cash being generated by satellite broadcaster British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) the old cliche that sky's the limit has become a truism. But there are signs that political limits may be imposed on free market forces and boundaries set which even Sky's seemingly unlimited purchasing power will not be allowed to breach.

BSkyB, in which Rupert Murdoch's News International has a 40 per cent shareholding, this week produced astonishing half-year returns with profits rocketing 93 per cent to £106 million pre-tax. The group widened its customer base by over half a million to 5. 2 million subscribers, including 450,000 in Ireland. A further eight channels are planned to augment the existing 23 channels

But Britain's Office of Fair Trading has decided to put in a defensive tackle to bring Sky down to earth. Amid mounting pressure to keep top sporting events for terrestrial channels, the OFT has asked the Restrictive Practices Court to examine Sky's deal with the FA Premier League.

The stock market took fright, ignoring the remarkable surge in profitability and marking the shares down sharply. Interim dividend has been set at 2.5p a share, well-supported by a 70 per cent growth in earnings per share.