Sony, which ruled the $30 billion video game industry over the last decade, has seen tepid demand for its latest game console, the PlayStation 3, launched in November.
But this has been more than offset by growing demand for digital cameras and camcorders, higher profit at its mobile phone venture with Ericsson (ERICb.ST) and a weaker yen, which boosts its overseas earnings when converted into the Japanese currency.
"There was a time when Sony's game unit earned most of the group profit and people said Sony is practically a game company," Mizuho Investors Securities analyst Mitsuhiro Osawa said.
"But its electronics division started to show signs of a revival last year. The pace of its recovery is picking up this year and it seems to be able to hit an operating margin of 5 percent."
Chief Executive Howard Stringer, the first non-Japanese to run Sony, has been targeting a 4 percent margin for its mainstay electronics division for the current business year to March 2008, and a 5 percent margin on a consolidated basis.
Sony President Ryoji Chubachi told Reuters in an interview this month operating margin at the electronics division, which makes Bravia LCD TVs and Cyber-shot digital cameras, was likely to exceed the 4 percent target.
Analysts on average expect Sony to post an operating profit of 51.85 billion yen ($428.3 million) for April-June, up from 27.05 billion yen a year earlier, according to Reuters Estimates.
The real rise for PS3 and Sony in general would be in second half of 2007 starting July with PS3 Price-cut, 5 free BLu-ray movies campaign and arrival of PS3's first batch of big exclusives from Lair to Ratchet to Uncharted ot Heavenly S.
Howard stringer is the man.. Wow turning an sinking ship to profit company. This guy is good.
I still can't understand why they don't just cokk the hammer and start firing off 20 gig PS3's stateside for people that don't care about wi-fi and extra storage, If they want to go buy a bigger HDD, then fine, but make more money with a lower priced SKU in the shortrun.
Keep the incentives on the 60 though while still offering the free movies and $100 off. But a $399 PS3 would be right on time about now imho of course.
let's all start to agree with whatever TheMART says.
everybody should say how bad sony and the ps3 are.
Fact.