LONDON (ShareCast) - Mobile content software specialist 2ergo has lifted full year underlying profits by 45% and said its sales pipeline is building steadily, leaving the group confident for 2008.

The company posted underlying profits of £4.2m in the year to August, up from £2.9m, excluding one-off costs of the acquisition of US group Proteus and the demerger of Broca. Sales rose by 13% to £33m and pre-tax profits by 11% to £2.59m.

Lancashire based 2ergo says it benefited from demand in the UK for “location-based services”, which exploit a mobile phone’s ability to determine the user’s location. The group enables websites such as Multimap and Rightmove, a property site, to be used on mobile phones.

"We are seeing increasing demand for mobile marketing and advertising solutions requiring convergent mobile and internet technologies. This is helping the group to expand into new areas, to introduce new products and services," joint chief executive Neale Graham said. "We look forward to another strong year," he added.

2ergo has also been expanding in North and South America through its subsidiary Proteus, which it acquired in September 2006.

In the US, Proteus provides a service allowing users to watch video footage from TV stations such as Fox News. It has also been shifting away from entertainment activities to enabling the use of mobile phones for services such as banking and accident and emergency services.

In South America, where 2ergo hopes its activities will grow similarly to those in the US, Proteus has entered into partnerships with TV stations to allow them to be viewed on mobile phones. It has potential access to over 170m clients in South America, it says.

Broca, which provides services allowing sensitive data such as credit card details to be sent securely by mobile phone, was floated on AIM in March 2007. 2ergo maintains a 19.9% shareholding in the company.

• News Channel