The Irish arm of global communications company AOL saw pretax profits rise by 10 per cent last year, to €2.8 million. In September AOL Global Operations said it would hire an additional 35 employees for its Dublin operation.

AOL, a provider of digital content, advertising solutions and services through brands such as the Huffington Post, has had a base in Dublin for the past 12 years, from where it operates the “development engine” for Europe.

In the year to December 31st, AOL’s Irish operation, which provides services to the AOL group and is run as a cost centre, reported a slight decline in turnover, of 8.4 per cent, to €19 million.

Employee figures rose in 2011, with an additional 34 people hired, bringing the total workforce to 159.