Sony profits dip, games division way up
by Justin McElroy 
{ Jul 29th 2008 at 3:45PM }
So what's the good news? Well, the video game division (earnings dead weight for quite some time) actually battled back to put up ¥5.4 billion (around $50 million) in profit after PlayStation 3 shipments rose to 1.56 million, a far cry from what we were hearing last October. It ... lives!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
DeaconGTG @ Jul 29th 2008 3:49PM
Great pic. I heart my PS3, but Frankenstein is a good analogy for that behemoth.
j.howlett @ Jul 29th 2008 3:52PM
it's alive
FOXHOUND @ Jul 29th 2008 3:54PM
LOL if that's a scene from YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN, then I'm gonna go put it on the Ritz right now. XD
Shagittarius @ Jul 29th 2008 4:14PM
Its pronounced 'fronk -n- steen'
Tiptup300 @ Jul 29th 2008 11:30PM
No! Walk _this_ way!
Nutchos @ Jul 29th 2008 4:07PM
So does this mean this mean the playstation 3 is now profitable or is the PS2 carrying the division?
Either way, good news all around. All three manufactures seem to be back in black for the new gen consoles.
Spiza @ Jul 29th 2008 4:23PM
Don't forget that the PSP has been doing better as well.
Vidikron (FU) @ Jul 29th 2008 5:27PM
Probably the PSP and PS2 help a lot, but this means that the PS3 isn't pulling the whole ship underwater anymore.
browntown @ Jul 29th 2008 4:06PM
Nice, now it means more great games from SONY. Now that the engines are built for many games, hopefully we get great games from each dev every two years, 09 looks pretty good as well, keep it up.
Leobebes @ Jul 29th 2008 4:14PM
Good you need Sony in this race to keep things fresh and competitive.
Ninjakamster (PS360 FTW!) @ Jul 29th 2008 9:09PM
Exactly, its a shame so many just want Sony to abandon the market like Sega sadly had to do.
F1 & The Way PC used to be. @ Jul 29th 2008 4:43PM
Goooood!!! Everything has gone exactly as I've desired!
Nugent @ Jul 29th 2008 4:47PM
@Nutchos: If you go over to Edge Online there is a more detailed breakdown. Most of the increase in profitability with regard to the PS3 probably came from increased PS3 software sales.
We can see why they haven't been buying out exclusives though; that's still a relatively slim amount of profit for a company as big as Sony. If they were paying out in the sums MS was rumored to be paying, they'd be in the red for this quarter.
dark_inchworm @ Jul 29th 2008 4:49PM
Sony Ericsson is doing poorly? Funny, I've been seeing the W580i phone everywhere. (This, for the record: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Ericsson_W580 )
Maybe that'll show up on their next report.
And really, while I am kinda on the middle ground concerning Sony's Playstation division, I do thoroughly enjoy my W300i phone.
dark_inchworm @ Jul 29th 2008 4:50PM
Oh, and... sorry if I seem like I'm peddling their products. Can I interest you in some fine leather jackets?
Ayrkain @ Jul 29th 2008 5:28PM
It's not just Sony-Ericsson; it's also the weak dollar vs. the yen and the consequent effects on the electronics market.
Marty @ Jul 29th 2008 5:01PM
Sony's investors aren't paying much attention to the good news, Joystiq. Their stock fell about $2.50, first time under $40 in a long time.
The_Punisher @ Jul 29th 2008 6:35PM
Once again negative. Can't you TRY to say something positive?
On second thought, don't bother. I wouldn't want to be the cause of your death.
nick @ Jul 29th 2008 6:03PM
The stock fell because Sony admits that it's outlook is not favorable at the moment. Consumers are spending less on higher cost or higher end items right now, and Sony typically sells electronics that are higher cost or higher end.
Also, Sony is still carrying a good amount of debt. As of March this year, they had 10 billion dollars worth of debt.
Lately their movie business has been underperforming.
The PS3 is peforming better, but has been a slow starter. Sony's game division has almost always carried the company during difficult times. The PS3 needs to carry the company.
Blu-Ray is the only high definition disc format now available, but hasn't yet achieved mainstream success. I would think they'll be a renewed push around the Christmas holidays this year. The players really need to be sub $200.
Sony needs to jettison under performing units, which would probably mean ditching the audio line (ie walkmans) and their phone business is becoming a money pit. Long term, Sony's music division could be a concern too.
EliteBeatsAgent08 @ Jul 29th 2008 6:17PM
Not to mention the ps2 and possbily the psp are the only things keeping "sony games" afloat these days.
Maverick Saturn @ Jul 29th 2008 8:09PM
Oh?
NoHitHair @ Jul 29th 2008 8:54PM
Proof that a healthy mix of brand loyalty, extermination of exclusivity, touting comparable hardware as miraculous (Cell) and a willingness to drop half a grand to purchase a product for only a single title (MGS4) will sell anything.
Sprinkle some gamers who obsess over ownership of all new consoles regardless of their merit, add a dash of typical public short-term memory to absolve that pesky PR problem and the blatant technological plagiarism that left the Sixasis' motion controls a rug-swept deformity and you've got yourself quite the cashcow.
I considered using $400 as kindling to keep me warm at night but perhaps this is a better investment.
na2ru1 @ Jul 29th 2008 9:49PM
I brought the ps3 since launch. 13 games.
WTF is it with all the sympathy for xbox these days?
NoHitHair @ Jul 29th 2008 10:43PM
Who said I'm pro-Xbox? I have problems with the entire industry as a whole. Even Nintendo, the company who traditionally bent over backwards for their customers is beginning to severely disappoint - something I believed could never happen.
And 13 games for a console after over a year and a half is very sad indeed. I doubt you still play all of those titles (or even most). And how many of those 13 are exclusive? It's a bit of a moot point to discuss the advantages of the PS3 if the games presented in defense of it are available on other systems.
j.howlett @ Jul 30th 2008 8:05AM
13 is alot of games and why do only exclusives count. thats an argument that can go either way.
Ihar `Philips` Filipau @ Jul 30th 2008 5:53PM
I wonder.
Did Sony shuffled all loses of game division to other units? Or PS2 is really that huge?