Set-top box maker Pace has reported a 168 per cent rise in pre-tax profits.

In the year to December 31 it made £76.5 million, against £28.5m the year before.

Income for the year grew 52 per cent to £1.1 billion, against £745.5m in 2008.

“In 2009 Pace delivered exceptional growth and record results and is now number two set-top box provider to the payTV industry globally,” said Pace chief executive Neil Gaydon.

He said Paced remained at the forefront of the biggest changes taking place in digital home entertainment.

“The quality of, demand for, and spend on digital home entertainment is growing. And we are ahead of the market in identifying and investing in new technologies to take advantage of this industry evolution,” he said.

“From 2010 high definition (HD) will become more mainstream and our operator customers will continue to invest in hybrid TV and bandwidth hungry technologies such as 3D, ultra high definition and whole home entertainment systems.”

He claimed that Pace was now the world’s most diverse set-top box business by customer, product and geography. “Our scale and product spread underpin our resilience, and provide a powerful platform to deliver ongoing sustainable growth.”