By the end of December 2002, the number of subscribers to the service stood at 6,562,000, coming from a total increase of 244,000 in the quarter, says a digitalsky report. The company's total revenue for the period was £1,511 million, composed mainly by a strong £1,112 million total from Sky Digital revenues.

Sky CEO Tony Ball was quoted as saying: "Double digit revenue growth combined with tight control of costs has resulted in strong margin expansion driving significant and rapidly growing free cash flow. We are well on track to hit all of our targets and we look forward to the rest of the year with confidence."

The report states that the percentage of the subscribers taking the top tier 'Sky World' package rose impressively to 55 per cent.

At 9.4 per cent, the proportion of subscribers leaving the service, over the six month period ended 31 December 2002 was the lowest since the launch of Sky Digital in 1998.

The crucial ARPU figure for the quarter, measuring the average total a subscriber will spend on the service in a year, was reported as £351, a £3 rise on the previous quarter, says the digital sky report.

Interactive revenues showed signs of stagnation, despite the higher number of subscribers. The total interactive revenues, composed from both Sky Active revenues and betting revenues, held still at £91 million. Whilst Sky Active revenues were up to £48m, they were met with a balancing decline in betting revenues to £43m.