When Sony published their Q4 2015 earnings report in late April, they were forced to delay their FY16 forecast in order to assess the damage caused by earthquakes which struck the company’s image sensor plant in Kumamoto. With the factory beginning to become fully operational again, Sony has now released their forecast guidance for FY2016 and things in PlayStation land are looking good.
In 2015, Sony opted to take a big write down on their remaining inventory of PS Vita and PS TV. Despite the short term loss, Sony actually labeled this as a positive.
(+) Absence of 11.2 bln yen write-down of PS Vita and PS TV components recorded in FY14
With both devices out of their system, PlayStation going forward will mostly be comprised of PS4 and their Network and Services business. With Uncharted 4 having done massive numbers in just its first week and PlayStation VR just a few months away from release, Sony is appropriately feeling confident about PlayStation and is forecasting an 8.3% sales increase in FY16.
FY2016 Forecast
Sales: 8.3% increase
- (+) Increase in PS4 software sales including sales through the network
- (+) Increase in PS4 hardware unit sales
OI: 46.3 bln yen increase
- (+) Increase in PS4 software and hardware sales
- (–) Decrease in PS3 software sales
No surprise that PS3 software sales will continue to contract in 2016 as hardly any new titles are released on the aging platform. The big question moving forward will be how well PlayStation VR sells in terms of hardware and software when released this holiday season. Sony is also rumored to unveil an upgraded PS4 ‘4K’ at E3 which will likely result in the current PS4 getting a $50 price drop this fall.
Discuss:
Do you think Sony will be able to continue to grow PlayStation?
[Via Sony]
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