Blinkx profits post an eightfold jump as video advertising thrives

"Video advertising is the fastest-growing of all the sub-sectors of advertising and we're fortunate to find ourselves right in the cross-hairs," the chief executive of the video search engine Blinkx declared yesterday as he unveiled an eightfold leap in annual profits to $17.7m (£11.5m).

S Brian Mukherjee said revenues were up 73 per cent to $198m, showing that online video was coming of age thanks to broadband and smartphones, nearly a decade after the Blinkx was founded. He also boosted profits by slashing operating costs. Blinkx shares rose 7 per cent to 115p.

Mr Mukherjee said the rise of YouTube "has helped validate this sector". The difference is Blinkx lets brands advertise against only professionally produced video, not user-generated content.