BSkyB reports record subscriber numbers

But BskyB chief executive Jeremy Darroch said the group had an “outstanding summer of sport” lined up and announced further rights deals after renewing ATP and US Open tennis contracts and securing the rights for RaboDirect Pro 12 rugby for the first time.

Third quarter figures showed the group signed up another 70,000 net new households - those joining, less those leaving - and said customers had taken out an extra 715,000 new subscription products.

This helped average revenues per user rise by £30 to £576.

Sky said it was hiring another 550 staff across the UK to meet demand from its growing customer base, with 200 in its sales teams and 350 in the customer service centre in Newcastle.

But Sky admitted some cast-strapped households were ditching its services amid the tough economic climate as its rate of “churn” rose to 10.8 per cent from 10.1 per cent a year earlier, although Mr Darroch said he was “comfortable” with the rate.

BSkyB said it was waiting for Ofcom’s response after the watchdog launched an investigation into a complaint by BT over Sky’s refusal to run adverts promoting the rival’s sports channel.

BT is claiming the move breaches TV advertising regulations, but Sky has argued it is reasonable not to carry ads for directly competing services.

BT is planning to roll out as many as three sports channels this summer and is taking on the might of Sky with its own “triple play” offering covering TV, home phone and broadband.

Some experts believe a low-cost BT wholesale offer to pubs and clubs could hit Sky’s margins.

But Sky’s shares rose as much as two per cent as the third quarter figures beat market expectations.

Figures were boosted by users signing up for new products such as on-demand downloads and Sky Go mobile services.

It said it had seen a fivefold increase in on-demand television downloads and a 37 per cent jump in movie rentals against last year.

The group did not provide separate figures for its online service Now TV - launched last year to compete with the likes of Netflix and Lovefilm - but said it was “very pleased” with its growth so far.