Unfortunately not shocking anyone, Sony has announced its first earning report for its 2012 fiscal year with a loss of $312 million while rival Apple just last week announced a $8.8 billion profit on $35 billion revenue. Fortunately, unlike the previous quarter which saw Sony finish out its 2011 year with a record $3.2 billion loss, the company has been able reduce its losses while growing revenue to $19.2 billion. The jump is mostly attributed to the acquisition of Sony Ericsson and bringing in the smartphone division in house under Sony Mobile.

Bringing all mobile operations in house did pose its own problems on the balance sheet as the cost of the buyout resulted in the division losing $143 million, wiping out all profits and leading Sony to its loss. As we reported earlier, Sony has also cut sales estimates of its PSP and PS Vita units by 4 million, down to 12 million units for the year. While Sony has touted the PS Vita as profitable from day one, the new handheld was unable to help offset lower PS3 and PSP sales, resulting in the gaming division to suffer a $45 million loss.

Sony’s other major pillar, digital imaging, was however part of the bright spots for the recovering electronic giant, posting a $160 million profit. While compact camera sales were down year over year, thanks to the rise of quality cameras on smartphones, DSLR and professional products were able to keep the division profitable. 

On the home entertainment side, things were down as usual for Sony as LCD sales continue to falter. It’s worth noting though that this is an industry wide trend which results in a $126 million loss for the division. Despite the loss, this is an encouraging sign as the division has considerably lowered its loss compared to previous quarters. In a surprise loss, Sony’s movie and television division also posted a loss of $62 million which is mainly credited towards a dip in sales in India rather than a worldwide trend.

With big movies like Men in Black 3 ($619 million), The Amazing Spider-Man ($659 million) not landing on the balance sheet till September and Skyfall, the upcoming James Bond movie, not arriving till the holiday season, the division should have no problem getting back into the black (profits).

With losses dropping considerably compared to previous quarters and Sony still having $8.4 billion in cash, 2013 might indeed be the year the company turns back to profits.

Discuss:

Do you think things are starting to look up for Sony or is the company still in a heap of trouble?