[Satellite TODAY Insider 01-31-11] In an effort to diversify its service portfolio, BSkyB has acquired U.K. public Wi-Fi operator The Cloud, BSkyB announced in its half-year results issued Jan. 27.
    The acquisition will give BSkyB ownership of more than 5,000 public Wi-Fi locations across the United Kingdom and aims to complement BSkyB’s existing broadband services by offering customers a comprehensive option for mobile Wi-Fi connectivity. The Cloud had gross assets of $27.2 million at the end of 2009, according to its most recent audited group financial statements.
    BSkyB also announced it broke the 10 million-customer mark at the end of December, with more than 3 million U.K. customers now subscribed to its broadband service. About 3.5 million subscribers are receiving BSkyB HD programming, a 70 percent increase compared to the same period a year ago.
    BSkyB’s revenues grew 15 percent in the six months to the end of December, with operating profits jumping 20 percent to $781.78 million during the period.
    Credit Suisse Analyst Nick Bertolotti said the performance by BSkyB explains why News Corp. is in a rush to acquire the shares it does not own in the operator.
    “Despite the noise of the News Corp proposal, the metronomic execution at Sky continues. While there are usually one or two weak points in each set of results, there are none we can find from our first take of the numbers and the ARPU and churn numbers in particular were extremely strong. This, and the ongoing rally in the U.K. equity market, highlights again that if the News Corp proposal is referred to the Competition Commission for a 6-8 month review, the eventual take-out price may be significantly higher than current levels,” Bertolotti said in a report.