Sky benefits from pay-as-you-go demand

The group reported a 10​ per cent​ rise in underlying earnings to £1.1​bn for the six months to December ​31 ​as it added 365,000 new customers and sold 20 million pay-as-you-go products, such as one-off films and sporting events.

The figures come days after Britain's competition watchdog provisionally blocked 21st Century Fox's £11.7​bn bid to take full control of Sky.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the deal would hand Fox owner Rupert Murdoch and his family too much control over UK news media and is looking at remedies before making its final decision by May 1.

Sky's interim results showed the group's customer base stands at 22.9 million after the half-year performance.

Chief executive Jeremy Darroch cheered an "excellent" set of results against a difficult consumer market, with household finances under pressure.

He said: "This performance reflects the investment choices we have made in recent years, allowing us to more than offset the pressure on consumer spending across Europe.

"Looking ahead, we expect the consumer environment to remain challenging, however we remain confident in our strategy and our ability to execute our plans."

​The results come at a tense time for the broadcaster amid speculation that Sky News may be closed to see the Fox deal approved.

Mr Murdoch​, who also owns newspapers including The Times and The Sun​, will have to find a way to appease the CMA, which could include spinning Sky News off, protecting its editorial independence, or closing the channel.