|
MUMBAI:
Japanese consumer electronics company Sony said that net profit
for the second quarter ended 30 September 2007 jumped almost
43 times from last year to 73.7 billion yen, or $646.7 million.
The
company said that sales of digital cameras, flat-panel televisions
and other consumer electronics more than offset losses at
its video games unit, which has been hurt by disappointing
sales of its new PlayStation 3 console.
Since
it does not have to worry about the extra cost this time last
year of recalling potentially faulty PC batteries, it raised
its operating profit forecast by ¥10 billion to ¥450
billion through to the end of next March, a six-fold rise
from a year earlier. Sales jumped 12.3 per cent to ¥2.08
trillion from ¥1.85 trillion.
The
size of Sony's profit jump also partly reflected the extent
to which the company's profits were depressed in the same
quarter last year by recalls of overheating laptop batteries.
In the most recent quarter, Sony also got a boost from its
movie division which rebounded to profitability on the back
of the films Superbad and Spider-Man 3.
Operating
profits at its electronics division rose 12-fold to 106.9
billion yen as sales rose 20.7 per cent.
Camera
and camcorder earnings helped offset losses from televisions,
which failed to turn profit because of falling prices for
liquid-crystal displays.
Losses
from the games unit widened after PlayStation 3 sales trailed
those of Nintendo's less-expensive Wii console. Reports state
that this has undermined the ability of Sony's chairman Howard
Stringer to revive a company that has lost more than a quarter
of its market value in the past five months. Sony may need
to increase sales this quarter, the biggest period for earnings,
to meet profitability targets for the year.
The
PS3 with its Blu-ray high-definition DVD recorder and high-performance
microchip, is the most sophisticated console on the market.
But the cost of the components and the time required to develop
new software to do the machine justice have afected sales
and forced Sony to implement several price drops that cut
into profits.
Reports
add that Sony plans to launch a new, cheaper PS3 model next
month to win back customers during the crucial Christmas shopping
season.
|
