Sony’s operating profit climbed to 622 billion yen (roughly 85 billion Czech koruna) in the three months ending in September, Novinky reported, a figure that beat analyst expectations and underscored how far the Japanese company has moved beyond its electronics origins into film, games, and music.
The film division posted revenue up nearly half year over year, driven largely by Spider-Man: No Way Home, which ranked among the highest-grossing films in history. “Spider-Man recorded a huge success and the market significantly underestimated how well Sony’s film division would perform,” said David Gibson, an analyst at MST Financial. “The results far exceeded expectations, and the company raised its outlook accordingly.”
Spider-Man Carries the Film Division Past Forecasts
The Spider-Man sequel’s commercial success shows why Sony has spent recent years reshaping its strategy. Where the company was once synonymous with consumer electronics, it now places greater weight on movies, video games, music, and Japanese animation. The film division’s revenue jump of nearly half in the quarter shows that bet paying off in concrete numbers.
Gaming Revenue Rises 9% on First-Party Titles
Sony’s gaming division grew revenue by 9% in the same quarter, helped especially by titles from its own studios. Marvel’s Wolverine sold 2.4 million copies by early November, according to figures reported by Konzolista.cz. The company is also counting on the upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto VI, scheduled for November 19, with a significant share of sales expected on PlayStation consoles.
“The gaming division wasn’t this interesting for a while, but with only two weeks until the release of Grand Theft Auto VI, pre-orders look exceptionally strong,” Gibson added.
Hardware sales tell a more measured story. Sony shipped 2.6 million PlayStation 5 consoles in the quarter, bringing the total to 97.9 million units, Konzolista.cz reported — about 900,000 fewer than in the same period a year earlier, and trailing the pace PlayStation 4 had set at the same point in its life cycle. PlayStation Network reached 127 million monthly active users as of September 30, up eight million year over year. Some 88.2 million games were sold for PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 during the quarter, up 7.9 million from the prior year, with first-party titles accounting for 8.2 million of those sales. Digital distribution made up 78% of game sales.
Did you know? Sony is increasingly connecting its entertainment businesses: a successful video game can become a TV series, a film brand can expand into games, and popular characters can cross media. The Last of Us television series, based on the PlayStation game, is the prime example.
Memory Chip Costs Squeeze Sony and Nintendo Alike
Sony has secured enough memory supply for its planned PlayStation 5 sales over the next fiscal year through pre-negotiated agreements with suppliers, Hrej.cz reported, though the next console generation could carry a noticeably higher price tag.
PlayStation 6 Development Stays on Schedule
Despite the memory cost pressure, Sony confirmed that development of the next-generation PlayStation platform is proceeding on schedule. Chief financial officer Lin Tao told investors that research and development “is running according to the schedule,” Hrej.cz and Games.tiscali.cz reported. The company plans to invest significantly more in the new platform starting in the next fiscal year.
Shares Climb More Than a Third Since June
Sony stock has risen more than one-third from its June low, Novinky reported.
When a major movie like Spider-Man lands, the film division’s numbers move sharply, and the gaming division’s quarterly game sales and PlayStation Network user counts also show growth.
Frequently Asked Questions About Sony’s Latest Results
How many PlayStation 5 consoles has Sony sold in total?
Sony has shipped 97.9 million PS5 units worldwide, including 2.6 million in the most recent quarter, according to Konzolista.cz. That is roughly 900,000 fewer than in the same quarter a year earlier.
When does Grand Theft Auto VI come out?
The game is scheduled for release on November 19, and a significant portion of sales is expected to land on PlayStation consoles.
What drove Sony’s film division growth this quarter?
Revenue in the film division rose nearly half year over year, primarily thanks to Spider-Man: No Way Home, which became one of the most commercially successful films in history.
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