BSkyB reports 32% increase in operating profits

There must be little doubt in everyone’s mind on the usefulness and importance of broadband nowadays. It’s a service that is accessed by hundreds of millions of people all over the world, whether it’s for business, entertainment, or for personal communications. It has changed and revolutionized how people live their lives and conduct business, from emails and instant messaging to conducting video conferences and meetings.

There’s a reason why European digital agenda commissioner Neelie Kroes is constantly calling on telecommunications companies to do their part in modernizing Europe’s broadband infrastructure. In fact, the European Union even has a project in the works that will funnel around €7 billion to fund high-speed broadband services, with another €9 billion set aside for the energy sector, which will fund the construction smart grids and development of broadband infrastructure and networks.

As proof of the impact that broadband has on business nowadays, a report released by Ericsson asserted that doubling broadband speeds in countries that belong to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) would result in an increase in the country’s national GDP, which equates to roughly a hundred billion dollars.

Another service provider that has made huge gains from offering broadband services is satellite broadcaster BSkyB. The company has reported an impressive 32% increase in operating profits to £327 million for the past three months. This was largely due in part to an increase of broadband users to 150,000, which more than made up for the expected slowdown when it came to new subscribers.

BSkyB also reported that the number of its customers who availed of broadband, telephony, and broadband services rose by 29%, pushing the figure to 2.9 million. The average revenue per BSkyB user also rose £25 to £535 a year, as compared to figures from 2010.

The firm’s chief executive, Jeremy Darroch, attributes the success to the company’s expansion into other services, saying: “In tough market conditions, our move to more broadly based growth and multiple products is serving us well.”

BSkyB has been actively encouraging its existing users to sign on to all three of the company’s services, since the current economy has made it markedly more difficult to reign in new subscribers.

Source – BBC