Sky is through to the second round of bidding for Virgin Media's television channels.

According to The Times, Channel 4 and Time Warner are also still in the running to acquire Bravo, Virgin1, Living and Challenge, which are being sold separately from Virgin Media Television's 50% stake in UKTV.

The paper said that sources in the City had revealed that bids for the channels came in at around £80m; however, other sources "close to the auction" said that the bids were "at a much higher level".

UBS was appointed to advise on the sale of Virgin Media's television unit in March. Over a year ago, Sky was reported to be interested in acquiring all of Virgin Media Television, including the stake in UKTV, for £600m.