BT: "Transformation" delivered growth in four straight quarters

The company said sales involving "new wave" services, including broadband, rose 35% to �1.13bn in the final three months of 2004.

That helped offset an 8% decline in revenues from its more traditional fixed-line telecoms operations.

The news comes as the firm says it will double the broadband speeds of most of its home and business customers.

Turnover for the company's third quarter stood at �4.58bn, similar to last year but lifting underlying profits to �545m.

Chief executive Ben Verwaayen said: "Our transformation strategy has now delivered underlying revenues growth in four consecutive quarters, a significant milestone."

There was a net exceptional profit before taxation in the quarter of �249m. This included the �284m profit on disposal of certain group investments, including Eutelsat and Starhub.