Please support Game Informer. Print magazine subscriptions are less than $2 per issue
Sony’s Financial Woes Nearly Quintuple After Second Quarter Mobile Phone Troubles
Sony has announced a drastic revision to its fiscal forecast for the year ending March 31, 2015. The company now projects a ¥230 billion ($2.15 billion) loss. In July, Sony expected only a ¥50 billion ($466.8 million) shortfall.
Sony cites a one-time “impairment charge” of ¥180 billion ($1.68 billion) related to its mobile communications division. Sony says the fair market value of this business has decreased.
The company also says it has revised its expectations for growth in the mid-range phone market. The new strategy will focus on specific geographies and premium handsets, with a reduction of model offerings in the mid-range.
[Source: Sony]
Our Take
This kind of financial hardship puts pressure on all divisions of the company’s operation, even those that are successful right now. Despite Sony touting 10 million PlayStation 4 consoles sold and the gaming division running in the black, this kind of change to shortfall projections could impact wholly owned studios as costs are cut from everywhere possible.
I’d like to ask you to support Game Informer’s continued coverage of games with a subscription. For less than two dollars per issue, we mail you a full year of 10 print magazines, each with cover stories and preview features filled with exclusive details about the most exciting upcoming games. We profile and interview game creators. We look back on the rich history of gaming, and we celebrate what’s next.
Here on the website, we offer much of our content for free, including game reviews, daily news, videos, event coverage, and more – all with minimal ads.
We do so with a small editorial team, alongside contributing paid writers from around the world – over 65 individuals from 9 countries around the world, just in the last couple of years.
It’s not possible without support.
In a time when game makers and games coverage have faced hard struggles and layoffs, the future of this 30+ year magazine and community is at risk. Our new standalone magazine subscription is the number one way you can keep us alive – and we believe you’ll get a pretty fantastic gaming magazine in your mailbox every few weeks for your trouble.
Thank you.
