John Lewis is really not happy about the upcoming exclusive supply agreement between Packard Bell and Dixons. It's not that keen on the same agreement that the high street retailer has with Compaq, either.

It threatened it would get legal and it has. Enlisting Tempo on its crusade, it has complained to the Office of Fair Trading that Dixons is preventing competition in the PC market, and wants an injunction against Packard Bell. Dixons is having none of it.

The OFT has rejected similar claims twice in the last year, but John Lewis is calling for it to re-evaluate its understanding of the PC market - with the ultimate end of course that the OFT has misread the law and Dixons is in
fact being very naughty.

We shall see. ®