Tokyo – Sony posted a net loss of 24.6 billion yen ($312 million), which was 9.1 billion yen deeper than the prior year’s fiscal first quarter due to higher exchange rates for the yen and lower TV and video game sales.
Corporately, sales were up 1.4 percent to 1,515.2 billion yen ($19.2 billion) compared with the prior year.
By business segment related to CE products, in home entertainment and sound, sales were down 26.2 percent year on year to 251.8 billion yen ($3.2 billion). This was primarily due to a decrease in LCD television unit sales in Japan, North America and Europe. The operating loss decreased 3.6 billion yen year on year to 10 billion yen ($126 million) due to cutting expenses in the LCD panel business.
However, TV sales were down 35 percent year on year to 157 billion yen ($1.99 billion), and operating loss decreased 8.1 billion yen year on year to 6.6 billion yen ($84 million U.S. dollars).
In the game segment, sales were down 14.5 percent year on year to 118 billion yen ($1.5 billion). This decrease was primarily due to lower sales of hardware and software of the PlayStation Portable and PlayStation3, partially offset by the contribution of the PlayStation Vita introduced from December 2011.
Sony reported an operating loss in games of 3.5 billion yen ($45 million U.S. dollars), compared with operating income of 4.1 billion yen in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year.
In the imaging products and solutions segment, sales increased 7.6 percent year on year to 193.8 billion yen ($2.5 billion).
Sony said the increase was due primarily due to a significant increase in sales of interchangeable-single-lens cameras reflecting higher demand, and a significant increase in sales of broadcast- and professional-use
products that had lower sales in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year due to supply issues arising from the
Great East Japan Earthquake, partially offset by a significant decrease in sales of compact digital cameras due to
market contraction.
Operating income was basically flat at 12.6 billion yen ($160 million).
In the mobile products and communications segment, sales were up 132.9 percent year on year to 285.6 billion yen ($3.7 billion). This increase was primarily due to the consolidation of Sony Mobile, partially offset by lower sales of PCs mainly resulting from price declines, Sony said.
On a pro forma basis, had Sony Mobile been fully consolidated in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year, segment sales would have increased approximately 14 percent. This increase was primarily due to higher average selling prices of mobile phones resulting from a shift to smartphones from feature phones, and higher unit sales of smartphones.
The operating loss of the unit was 28.1 billion yen ($356 million) was recorded, compared with operating income of 1.6 billion yen in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year. This deterioration in segment results was due to sales of PCs and the impact associated with the acquisition of Sony Mobile.
Sony has lowered its fiscal year forecast since May, saying that sales and operating revenue will be 6.8 trillion yen, down 8.1 percent from the earlier estimate, but that the net loss will be 20 billion yen vs. the 30 billion previously estimated.
