Scottish media company STV has announced 53% increase in digital revenue within the last year and an operating profit of £7m, despite an overall fall of revenue by 5% to £47.2m.

The company has released its financial figures for the first half of 2011, revealing that it increased its operating profit by £100,000 on the same period in 2010, but has seen its revenue fall from £49.7m to £47.2m at the same time.

Pre-tax profit has grown by £500,000 over the same period to £7m, STV revealed, while its net debt has also decreased to £57.5m from £60.7m.

In the last year STV has settled its legal tussle with ITV, while also witnessing the growth of its digital output through the launch of services such as STV Holidays and STV Daily Deals in recent months.

The implementation of STV Local has also developed over recent months.

STV chairman Richard Findlay, commented: “Trading is in line with expectations and I am pleased to report that we continue to see encouraging growth in our digital business.  The wide ranging settlement agreed with ITV removes significant uncertainty and we look forward to a new and constructive relationship.  The various legacy issues have now been closed out, resulting in a cash positive operating structure going forward.  Whilst we remain cautious about the near-term TV advertising market, we have complete confidence that our strategy will continue to deliver growth with a resumption of dividends at the end of the year barring unforeseen circumstances.”

Chief executive officer Rob Woodward, added: “We have transformed STV from a traditional broadcaster to a digital media company that engages with consumers across multiple platforms offering a compelling range of must-have digital services. We are excited by new technological developments that allow us to significantly extend our reach, and allow us to work with partners to deliver our unique, compelling content that can be accessed anywhere, anytime.”