Sony records huge net profit in 2015 even as mobile sales decline

Sony has announced its earnings for the financial year 2015, and the vendor has recorded its largest increase in profit since 2007. Net profit increased by 666.7% to ¥304.5 billion ($2.7 billion), and operating profit shot up 329% to ¥294.2 billion ($2.6 billion). The spurt in profits is due to continued demand for the PlayStation 4, with the games division witnessing an 84.3% increase in operating income to ¥88.7 billion ($785 million) and a 11% increase in sales netting ¥1.5 trillion ($13.2 billion).

Revenue was down 1.3% to ¥8.1 trillion ($71.6 billion), which is largely attributed to falling sales in the smartphone segment. Sales from the mobile division declined by 20% as Sony took “a strategic decision not to pursue scale in order to improve profitability.” Revenue from the mobile division was at ¥1.1 trillion ($9.7 billion), with an operating loss of ¥61.4 billion ($544 million).

Sony’s image sensor division also failed to live up to expectations, posting an operating loss of ¥28.6 billion ($253 million) on account of a ¥59.6 billion ($528 million) impairment charge. Sony’s imaging sensors are used in most flagships available today, and the manufacturer was setting its sights on this division for long-term growth. That doesn’t look likely anymore, as Sony is now forecasting a decline in demand for its camera modules.

In the camera division, operating profit rose 72.7% to ¥72.1 billion ($638 million), with revenue declining by 1.7% to ¥711.2 billion ($6.29 billion). Sony was able to offset the declining revenue by focusing on the high-end models in the camera segment.

Sony is also postponing its quarterly earnings forecast to May following recent earthquakes in Kumamoto, where the vendor has a semiconductor plant and imaging sensor production facility.