Sony reports $280M net profit in Q2, but mobile sector continues to struggle

By David Curry October 30, 2015

sony one megapixel two millimeter sensor — 360b / Shutterstock

Following the trend of Samsung and LG, Sony reported a small profit in its second-quarter financial report, but its mobile business showed poor returns. The Japanese firm noted $280 million in net profit, and $14.5 billion in total revenue.

Compared to this time last year, Sony is showing signs of recovery. In the second quarter last year the firm reported $785 million net loss, alongside a $1.5 billion write off for the mobile division.

Consolidation has been the key for Sony in mobile, lowering the amount of products launched and produced this year significantly. That has led to a 15 percent decrease in mobile revenue, down to $231 million. The division is still unprofitable, reporting a loss of $172 million this quarter, but that is a lot better than the $1.5 billion it had to suffer in 2014.

Sony confirmed earlier this month that it would not sell the mobile division, but other reports claimed that a lack of profitability next year might force the company to change its tune. Chief executive Kazuo Hirai refuted the possibility of Vaio-style sale anytime in the near future.

Outside of the mobile business, Sony continues its upward trend. The entertainment sector reported $3 billion in revenue — a 16.5 percent year-on-year growth — alongside $199 million profit. PS4 game sales were the main contributor to the revenue growth.

In the components sector, Sony reported $1.5 billion revenue and $215 million in profit. Sales are up 4.1 percent year-on-year, but the real shocker is the 29 percent profit growth in the sector, fueled by the company’s popular 21-megapixel camera and being the main supplier of Apple’s iSight camera.

Similar to most in the industry, Sony is struggling to keep investors excited about its mobile business, when it could be focusing time on more profitable sectors. Nokia, in contrast, sold its mobile business to Microsoft in 2013 and has been showing large profits ever since.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

David has been writing about technology for several years, following the latest trends and covering the largest events. He is…

Gaming

Sony’s fiscal year report confirms no PS5 launch before March 2020

Sony PS5 PS4 release launch fiscal year report analysis sales

After a wave of theories, predictions, and leaks, the official rollout for Sony’s next home console has begun. System architect Mark Cerny started things off with a tease of the console’s hardware in a Wired interview, and now, via the company’s report on the 2018 fiscal year, we know that the PlayStation 5 won’t launch before spring 2020.

Analysis of the forecasts in Sony’s consolidated financial results led us to conclude that the PS5 won’t be launching before the close of the 2019 fiscal year and The Wall Street Journal’s Takashi Mochizuki confirmed as much with Sony. We know that the company will be dishing out lots of money for advertising when the PS5 launch is set in stone and a specific element Mochizuki points toward is the lack of an increase in marketing cost for the 2019 fiscal year, which is the time between April 2019 and March 2020.

Mobile

One of the biggest Oura Ring competitors just did something huge

The Ultrahuman Ring Air and the Oura Ring, resting on a table.

Ultrahuman, the maker of the Ultrahuman Ring Air, is making its way to U.S. production grounds. The company is setting up a production facility in Indiana, which will mark the first time a smart ring from Ultrahuman will be assembled from scratch on U.S. soil.

“The UltraFactory will offer an end-to-end production capability and is based on the company’s first operational model of such a facility in India,” the company says.

Mobile

Best Verizon new customer deals: Galaxy S24, iPhone and more

If you’re in the market for one of the best phones, or any new phone for that matter, you’re going to need a good carrier. Verizon has long been one of the most popular options, as it boasts one of the most reliable networks in the United States. It offers some of the best cell phone plans out there, and for new customers Verizon also offers some pretty impressive discounts on new phones. In many cases this means you can brand new, recently released phones entirely for free when signing up with Verizon. And that’s the case right now, as we’re currently seeing some of the best Verizon new customer deals we’ve seen. You can pretty easily land a new iPhone, Samsung Galaxy phone, and Google Pixel for free, and we’ve got all of the details on how to do so. If that sounds enticing, read onward and start shopping the best Verizon new customer deals available right now.
Free iPhone SE (3rd Gen)

The 2022 release of the Apple iPhone SE is yours for free when you sign up for a new 5G data plan on Verizon -- no trade-ins required. It's the best small smartphone in our list of the best smartphones with a 4.7-inch Liquid Retina display, but it doesn't sacrifice performance as it's powered by Apple's A15 Bionic chip that's also found in the iPhone 13 line and pre-installed with iOS 15. The latest iPhone SE is equipped with a single 12MP rear sensor and 7MP selfie camera, which are boosted by Apple's software to enable better photographs.