In this account, the author charts the story of the furore over Mrs Thatcher's plans to auction off the 16 licences, how the industry turned the tables and the battles that took place behind closed doors as contenders bid nearly #700 million for the stations once descibed as "a licence to print money". The book concludes with an assessment of the future of commercial broadcasting. The book features well-known media figures such as Richard Branson, David Frost, Phil Redmond and Michael Green.