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Time Warner reported a small profit increase for the first-quarter based on an increase in advanced cable service subscribers and advertising sales at AOL and TNT.

Time Warner's net income for the first quarter was $963 million, up from $961 million the year before.

Chairman and CEO Dick Parsons said, "I'm pleased that our businesses delivered such a solid performance this quarter -- underscoring our broad-based strength and the success of our strategy to run our businesses as best in class. Driven by growth across our Cable, AOL and Networks segments, these results, particularly our substantial Free Cash Flow generation, give us a great start to meeting our full-year financial objectives.

Reuters writes:

Excluding 2 cents in one-time gains that included a rise in fair value of an option related to the sale of Warner Music Group, the results beat the Wall Street consensus estimate by a penny, as compiled by Reuters Estimates. Shares rose 2 percent in premarket trading.

Revenue increased 3 percent to $10.48 billion, just above the average Wall Street estimate.

Time Warner is currently working on buying cable company, Adelphia.

"As we continue to move our businesses forward, our pending acquisition of Adelphia's assets gives us a unique opportunity to grow our company in a disciplined way," said Parsons. "Time Warner Cable's robust growth this quarter in high-speed data and Digital Phone subscribers, as well as its strong showing in enhanced digital video services, reinforces our confidence in the cable industry's promising future. With our progress on these and other fronts, we've positioned Time Warner strategically, operationally and financially for sustained, superior growth and improved shareholder returns."

Time Warner earned 18 cents a share before some one-time items.

Time Warner shares went down 12 cents yesterday in NYSE composite trading. The shares have fallen 2.5 % over the last year.

Chris is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest ebusiness news.