On the day that the UK was expected to officially climb out of recession its leading multichannel television provider announced the addition of a further 94,000 subscribers to reach 9.536 million households.

Boosted by continued demand for Sky+ HD � which has the support of over 30 channels � the satcaster�s target of 10 million subscribers now seems well within reach. The high definition service, which still attracts a �10 monthly premium put on another 287,000 net additions to reach 1.6 million households. Sky UK has the largest selection of HD channels in Europe.

The linking of Sky�s broadband to its telephony service has also resulted in an increase in the number of customers taking TV, broadband and telephony. 17% of customers now take the triple play package as opposed to 12% in the prior year.

Operating profit in the quarter to September 30, 2009 was up by 11% to �198 million.

The basic Sky+ personal video recorder put on another 411,000 subscribers to reach 5,902 million households. Even the multiroom product added 62,000 homes, 11,000 more than in the September quarter of 2008, to reach 1,897,000