Speaking at the Leaders in Football 2013 event, Mr Patterson repeated BT’s previous sentiment that the company was happy to co-exist alongside the pay-TV giant.
He told attendees “We believe we can co-exist with Sky. Our success does not require their failure, to think otherwise markedly underestimates the scale of the opportunity in this market.”
BT is using the offer of free sports to bolster its lucrative broadband business which has come under pressure in recent years after Sky introduced its own broadband service which it targeted at its TV customers.
Patterson said the success of the channels was about more than just viewing numbers, saying the offer of previously expensive TV content would help grow BT’s web and phone business.
He also confirmed that the company was considering a bid to broadcast Champions League matches from 2015 when the current Sky/ITV deal comes to an end.
However he stressed that any bid would depend on the ability to make money from the content and that the channel was looking at a number of sports beyond the League.
He said: “This is a long-term strategy for us and you can expect us to do a lot more in the future if the right opportunity to create value presents itself.”