Murdoch and Berlusconi clash over media networks

Two of the world's richest men are butting heads over a series of media disputes taking place in Italy. Rupert Murdoch, head of News Corp, is suing two units of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's Mediaset after a nine month long feud.

News Corp have stated that Italian prime minister's media arm was preventing its Italian unit, Sky Italia, from buying ads on its television networks and, as such, is monopolising the market. Mediaset has also recently expanded into pay television, which was formerly solely the domain of Sky Italia.

In a statement, News Corp said, "News Corp believes these companies have violated European Commission rules governing free competition."

The clash between the two men started last December when Berlusconi's government decided to double the VAT levied on Sky Italia to 20 percent. In an unsurprising move, Murdoch's papers and news channels across the world have set upon the Italian premier with relish, headlining with the scandals relating to him and sexual and financial duplicity against him.

Berlusconi has responded by saying Murdoch is launching a personal attack against him and has stated he plans to sue his newspapers in the UK, as well as across Europe, for libel.

The Times in particular has been singled out as 'vilifying' the Italian Prime Minster, publishing pictures of Berlusconi cavorting with "topless women and naked men" at his villa. They also ran stories on his relationship with call girl Patrizia D'Addario and ran an opinion piece by Cambridge academic Mary Beard comparing Berlusconi to the Roman emperor Tiberius.

"Tales of Tiberius's sexual immorality hinted at something even more rotten at the heart of his political regime," she wrote. "Here too the comparisons with Mr Berlusconi are striking..."

Mr Berlusconi is among Italy's richest men, estimated to be worth US$6.5 billion by Forbes magazine. Now serving his third term as Italy's prime minister, he controls Mediaset as well as AC Milan football club.

In comparison, Rupert Murdoch owns News Corp, TV broadcaster Sky, the Times and Sun newspapers in the UK and the New York Post and Wall Street Journal in the US and, according to the 2009 Forbes 400 Rich List, is worth over US$4 billion.

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