PlusNet confirmed to the City this morning that it is in talks which might lead to the sale of the business - with BT reportedly in pole position.

The broadband reseller said it had been forced to 'fess up because of unusual movements in its share price - which has gone up more than 25 per cent in the last two days.

PlusNet said in a statement that it "has received a preliminary approach which may or may not lead to an offer being made for the company".

The statment quoted the Independent which said a bidding war was possible because German group Freenet.de is also interested in the ISP.

The firm's share price on London's Alternative Investment Market had skipped from 150 to over 200 since early Wednesday. It had previously fallen from an all-time high of over 400 in April.

BT was said in reports to have shown an interest.

The statement is available from this page on the LSE site.®

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