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News

  Sony Posts Q2 Loss, As PS3 Sales Rise On Price Cut
by Kris Graft
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October 30, 2009
 
Sony Posts Q2 Loss, As PS3 Sales Rise On Price Cut
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Sony posted lower revenues and a net loss for its fiscal Q2 on a strengthening yen, as unit sales of PlayStation 3 rose 33 percent year-on-year thanks to a September price cut.

Tokyo, Japan-based Sony said the introduction of the slimmed-down, less expensive PS3 drove hardware unit sales to 3.2 million units during the quarter ended September 30. The company sold 2.4 million units for the same period a year ago.

Analyst Arvind Bhatia with Stern Agee called the quarterly PS3 sales a "positive for the industry, especially in light of Nintendo’s reduced target for Wii hardware sales announced yesterday."

Sony previously said that the new, slim PlayStation 3 sold 1 million units in its first three weeks on the market worldwide.

Despite the spike in PS3 sales, Sony's Networked Products and Services Division, which is home to its games business, saw revenues drop 24 percent year-on-year to ¥352.6 billion ($3.9 billion). Operating loss in the division was ¥58.8 billion ($645.40 million), up from a loss of ¥40.6 billion ($445.63 million) a year ago. Sony attributed the drop to lower Vaio PC and game revenues.

Sony said decreasing sales of the venerable nine-year-old PlayStation 2 were the main driver behind lower game revenues. The company sold 1.9 million PS2s during the quarter, down from 2.5 million a year ago. PlayStation Portable sales were also down, dropping to 3 million sold during the quarter compared to 3.2 million units for the same quarter a year prior.

Sony reiterated full-year PS3 sales of 13 million units, up from 10.1 million units for the previous year. The company also still expects to sell 15 million PSP units this year and 5 million PS2s this year. The company also said it expects to sell 23.9 million PS3 software units this year, up from 21.2 million a year ago; 12.9 million PSP titles, up from 11.8 million; and 11.1 million PS2 titles, down from 23.2 million units.

As a whole, Sony posted revenues of ¥1.66 trillion ($18.46 billion), a 19.8 percent year-on-year decrease. Net loss was ¥26.3 billion ($292 million) compared to net income of ¥20.8 billion ($228.37 million) for the same quarter last year. Sony attributed the lower figures to a "slowdown of the global economy and the appreciation of the yen."

Sony said that it beat its Q2 expectations, and revised its annual profit outlook upward. The company now expects a net loss of ¥95 billion ($1.04 billion), down from a previous net loss outlook of ¥120 million ($1.32 million) for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2010.
 
   
 
Comments

Derek Saclolo
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Sony is way too focused on the hardware and less focused on the actual games. They're losing money per PS3 Slim sold, and expecting profits to come from the games. It's almost like they're saying "buy our console, and we promise you we'll give you good games". Sony can brag all they want about how many PS3 Slims they sold and that "It Only Does Everything", but they need to focus more on selling the games if they plan to make any financial progress.

Hélder Gomes Filho
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@Derek

Don't worry, God of War III and Gran Turismo 5 are coming.

And two final fantasy XIII... O.O I want to buy a PS3 only to play FF

Andre Thomas
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For the record, these loses aren't just coming from the SCE, but also Sony's other divisions given the lack in demand for consumer goods. In fact this doesn't suprise me given the fact the consumer electronics business is being hit hard by the recession.

Sean Parton
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@Derek Saclolo: Demon's Souls says hi as well.

Roberto Alfonso
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Helder, don't worry, you can buy an Xbox 360 and play the same game too :-P Good games are coming, but it could already be too late. They should focus on regaining profitability, their entertainment division is virtually $6b in the red since they started researching for PlayStation 3.

Hélder Gomes Filho
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@Roberto: I don't want the regular FF, I want the other one... :P Playing the regular FF is just a "bonus"

No exclusive Xbox 360 game made me want a Xbox 360 so far, maybe with exception of Shadow Complex... But I will not buy a stupid console that keeps failing to play just one game...

Mohales Deis
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Sony (PS3) has the games and great ones at that. WHat they need, in my opinion, is a stronger marketing push and presence a la Microsoft. Microsoft has the cash and capital to pay for large amounts of marketing, PR, partnerships, and exclusive content. Sony needs to focus on their strengths and opportunities like they are doing with the GOW3 Demo pack in with District 9. If indeed many people are buying PS3's as a Blu-Ray player like many people suggest then use that to your advantage to sell games. I am sure there are a plethora of creative ways they can use that and their other advantages as leverage.


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