Sony has unveiled its most recent financial report, indicating a rise in overall sales across the company and its PlayStation sector.
Despite the positive sales trend, Sony has adjusted its sales projections for PlayStation, citing an anticipated decline in hardware sales. Notably, the company has disclosed its intention not to launch any new games from its major franchises in the upcoming fiscal year.
Key Highlights:
Financial Performance:
For the nine-month period ending December 31, 2023:
- Sales reached ¥9.54 trillion ($63.3 billion), marking a 20% year-on-year increase.
- Operating income stood at ¥979.4 billion ($6.5 billion), reflecting a 15% decrease.
Game & Network Services:
- Sales amounted to ¥3.2 trillion ($21.2 billion), up by 23%.
- Operating income totaled ¥184.2 billion ($1.2 billion), down by 12%.
PlayStation Performance:
Sony shipped 8.2 million PlayStation 5 units during Q3, a notable improvement over the 7.1 million units shipped in the same quarter the previous year. Since the fiscal year began in April, a total of 16.4 million units have been shipped, reaching 22.7 million PS5s shipped in 2023 when including calendar Q1 units.
Monthly active users for PlayStation Network reached 123 million by the end of the quarter, up from 112 million.
In Q3, 89.7 million full games were sold, with 16.2 million being first-party titles. While the overall figure surpassed the previous year’s quarter, first-party sales experienced a slight decline.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, PlayStation’s major first-party release of 2023, shipped 10 million units within 107 days of its market debut. Comparatively, the original game and Miles Morales achieved different sales figures over similar periods.
Notably, Sony indicated during an earnings call that no new entries from established IPs are planned until April 2025 at the earliest. This decision, coupled with the PS5 nearing the midpoint of its lifecycle, has led to a forecasted decline in hardware sales for the next fiscal year.
Financial Forecasts:
Sony has revised its forecast for the current fiscal year, anticipating Game & Network Services sales of ¥4.15 trillion ($27.5 billion), a 6% decrease from previous guidance. However, this still represents a 14% improvement over the previous fiscal year’s sales.
Forecasts for operating income within this segment remain unchanged at ¥270 billion ($1.8 billion), reflecting an 8% year-on-year increase.
Overall Performance:
Despite adjustments in projections, Sony experienced a robust holiday quarter, with Game & Network Services sales up by 16% year-on-year to ¥1.44 trillion ($9.6 billion).
Notable increases were observed in digital game and add-on content sales, network services revenues, and hardware sales.
In summary, while Sony continues to demonstrate strength in its overall sales performance, adjustments in PlayStation’s sales forecasts and game release strategies indicate a shifting landscape for the gaming giant.
