Sony profits triple on strong PlayStation 4 and camera sales

30 Jul 2015

Japanese technology giant Sony's turnaround is in full swing as the company saw Q1 profits triple mainly due to PS4 demand and camera sales.

Strong sales of camera sensors and PlayStation 4 consoles have helped triple Sony’s Q1 profits to US$676m, showing that the company’s turnaround is in full effect.

Sony reported revenues of US$14.8bn, which were flat year-on-year, mainly due to poor sales of smartphones and home entertainment products like mid-range LCD TVs.

Sony’s mobile communications division saw sales fall 16.3pc to US$2.2bn while the home entertainment and sound group saw sales fall 13.8pc to US$2bn.

The company’s game network services division, however, saw sales increase 12.1pc to US$2.3bn driven by strong demand for PlayStation 4 consoles. The games division reported an operating profit of US$160m.

Sony is estimated to have sold more than 25m PlayStation 4 consoles to date.

Sales were also up 3.5pc in Sony’s imaging business to US$1.3bn due to demand for high-end digital cameras. The imaging products and solutions group reported operating profits of US$174m.

The company’s devices group, including sales of semiconductors, batteries and image sensors, reported a 35pc surge in Q1 revenues of US$1.9bn.

Sony Pictures recorded a loss of US$96m while Sony Music’s revenues were up 8.5pc to US$1bn.

Sony PlayStation 4 image via Shutterstock

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com