The meeting, called just days before TalkTalk and BT managed to persuade the High Court that a judicial review of the Digital Economy Act is a good idea, was seen as a catch-up for the minister to discover how consumers are being served by the digital market.

However, it achieved far more than that. Incredibly for a grouping that saw the heads of the BPI, UK Music, AIM and several labels face off across the table from top execs from ...