For the year to June 30 its pre-tax losses were £1.4m (compared with £3.1m for the year to June 2007). Revenue during the year doubled to £5.9m (£2.56m) which is not at all bad considering it is not yet operating its own satellite.

Avanti is building its first satellite, HyLas One, due for launch in 2009. There are plans for further satellite projects, the company said. John Brackenbury, Avanti’s chairman, said, "Being the first to launch a broadband satellite in Europe gives us great confidence in our capability to deliver exceptional returns to shareholders."

Avanti’s satellite is claimed to be three times as powerful as any other European satellite, The company has won future business from the European Space Agency, the EU, various UK regional development agencies and is now busy seeking business from UK overseas embassies.

CEO David Williams added that he is "highly optimistic about the market environment in which we operate." Avanti Communications reported a 2008 loss attributable to equity holders of £994,000, compared to profit attributable to equity holders of £21.09m last year.

The company posted full year basic loss per share of 3.60p, compared to basic profit per share of 82.05 pence in the previous year. Full year pre-tax loss was £1.36m, while a year-ago had pre-tax profit of £20.2m.

© Rapid TV News 2008