Sony has reported growth in sales and profits following strong demand for its Playstation 4 video game consoles and the success of James Bond’s latest outing, Spectre.
The Japanese electronics firm said it also benefited from the effects of the weak yen when it announced nine-month profits of $1.95bn (£1.36bn) following a loss in the same period of 2014.
The PS4 and image sensors it makes for mobile devices have been driving recovery at a company that was once weighed-down by losses in its TV business amid strong competition from rivals at home and abroad.
It announced in November that sales for the PS4, launched in November 2013, had topped 30 million.
A restructuring, that has included the sale of its US headquarters in New York and its laptop division, has also been credited with raising its profitability.
The company said: “This was primarily due to the significant increase in sales in the game and network services segment and the impact of foreign exchange rates, substantially offset by the significant decrease in sales in the mobile communications segment.”
But while its movie unit revenues rose 27% – with the release of Spectre the driving force behind the jump – Yasuo Nakane, senior analyst at Mizuho Securities, told the AFP news agency: “Its restructuring isn’t over.
“There is room for more change in mobile communications, the movie sector, at headquarters and in its battery businesses.”
Sony is to base its Playstation business in the United States as part of the changes to bring its gaming business together.
