entremet
Member
They don't. Sony is s fundamentally different company now. They're healthy, but I don't see them back per se. They're not a major CE player anymore.
They've pivoted nicely. But they're rather boring outside of PlayStation.
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Sony shares rally on hopes it could see the best profit in 20 years
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They've pivoted nicely. But they're rather boring outside of PlayStation.
Rebel Leader
THE POWER OF BUTTERSCOTCH BOTTOMS
Lys Skygge
Member
Between the PS4 and their amazing cameras, I'm happy things are going well for Sony! Now if only they'd stop dicking around with their films and release something good.
Their camera division is killing it right now.
Shin
Banned
Might want to look up the A1E, various sites claim it's the best TV they've ever reviewed.
I've been following it on AVSForum: AVSForum owners thread
entremet
Member
I'm not knocking the quality of their products. TVs have just become commodity items basically. They're cheap and have very low margins. The market for enthusiasts who appreciate stuff that Sony does is very small.
Do you remember the Pioneer Kuro line? Arguably one of the best TVs ever at the time. Pioneer is out of the TV business.
hodayathink
Member
Dark Tower releases in 4 months and we haven't seen any promo for it except a poster. That's not a good sign.
It's just a shame that Sandler is now tied up with Netflix or they'd just push out a couple of cheap shitty movies with him in for some quick profit.
Most definitely not following their TV division progress this couple of years....
And looks like some people actually stuck between 2006-2013 era of Sony. People changes so does company.
Shin
Banned
I hear ya, it's with every segment unfortunately.
As a consumer I'd prefer to have more choices than just LG/Samsung so to speak.
Hard to explain it, their products cost a premium but tend to drop the ball in certain area's.
Netherscourge
Banned
It's impressive how the PS4 and cutting all the waste of money divisions saved the company.
i like sony's cameras. those picture quality are one of the best i've seen (don't flame me!)
back when sony's cell phone are shit (weak spec compare to competitor) but their camera on them are still great. now i think their phone are somewhat up to par with spec but overpriced (right??)
eitherway, their standalone cameras are still great tho. but since cellphone camera is more of a thing now for casual picture takers, those digital camera seems niche for casual customer now.
back when sony's cell phone are shit (weak spec compare to competitor) but their camera on them are still great. now i think their phone are somewhat up to par with spec but overpriced (right??)
eitherway, their standalone cameras are still great tho. but since cellphone camera is more of a thing now for casual picture takers, those digital camera seems niche for casual customer now.
They just broke free of a bunch of dead weight and you want them to put the shackles back on already lol
Melchiah
Member
The mid-priced Z3 Compact competed spec-wise with Samsung's and Apple's flagship models.
By avoiding attempts to push volume and instead focusing on profitable market segments and regions, the mobile division has been profitable for the past 3 quarters.
The TV and consumer electronics division has returned to consistent profitability as well, by cutting costs and focusing on high end products.
The sensor division has actually had a few tough quarters due to the 2016 earthquake, but that has been a strong performer in recent years.
The music, camera, games, and financial services divisions have been consistently profitable.
The only unprofitable divisions at this point are movies, where Kaz has been in LA to oversee the restructuring personally, and the battery division, which I believe is being sold off.
Seems like a pretty solid turnaround to me.
Their flagships are (almost) always competitively spec-ed and are priced relatively similar to other flagships. Their low/mid range phones are over priced though.
They should absolutely not give up on movie division. They should invest into restructuring, [giving less money to Avi Arad 
] and trying to find new profitable franchises. Bond franchise is up for grabs, who knows if they will snatch another long-term distribution deal for it.
I still find it bafling that they don't want to push their phones in the US. Kaz himself admitted that their primary phone market is Japan, and then Asia and Europe. In the US they have very limited deals with cell providers, and their phones often arrive in the US very late.
IMO, they should revitalize their business on a worldwide scale by offering OnePlusOne-styled 'flagship killler' in the $300-350 price range, and then evolving that phone line over the years.
] and trying to find new profitable franchises. Bond franchise is up for grabs, who knows if they will snatch another long-term distribution deal for it.I still find it bafling that they don't want to push their phones in the US. Kaz himself admitted that their primary phone market is Japan, and then Asia and Europe. In the US they have very limited deals with cell providers, and their phones often arrive in the US very late.
IMO, they should revitalize their business on a worldwide scale by offering OnePlusOne-styled 'flagship killler' in the $300-350 price range, and then evolving that phone line over the years.
vpance
Member
Movies biz is so volatile and high risk when you have no good franchises. And when your best ones barely scrape by in profits then what's the point?
All the best talent being consolidated with the bigger studios doesn't help matters. Get rid of movies, pocket the $20B, and make PS5 a beast.
All the best talent being consolidated with the bigger studios doesn't help matters. Get rid of movies, pocket the $20B, and make PS5 a beast.
If they do that it will lower their brand perception and it would be difficult for them to increase the price later on. They just need to get their phones on US carriers and do a massive advertising push. Launching the phone worldwide shortly after announcement.They should absolutely not give up on movie division. They should invest into restructuring, [giving less money to Avi Arad
I still find it bafling that they don't want to push their phones in the US. Kaz himself admitted that their primary phone market is Japan, and then Asia and Europe. In the US they have very limited deals with cell providers, and their phones often arrive in the US very late.
IMO, they should revitalize their business on a worldwide scale by offering OnePlusOne-styled 'flagship killler' in the $300-350 price range, and then evolving that phone line over the years.
And when the ps5 flops like the ps3
And they sell the division for a few billion.
Dr. Kitty Muffins
Member
Sony's TV's this year are great. The 900e is spectacular for the money.
Triplicates
Member
I've been happy to see Sony's return to form. They have the best TV and best cameras and best console on the market. Everything they do pushes boundaries. I hope their recovery continues.
No. It's a great division of Sony, but other ones are also contributing.
vpance
Member
PS5 flop why?
Their 2017 line is really great, and their pricing is not that insane even.
- X800D/X800E is a rare "no compromise" HDR entry 4K TV
- X900E - FALD with great visuals
- X930E is best edge-lit TV that was ever made
- X940E is a behemoth of a TV with great visuals [only comes in 75"]
- Z9D is one of the best high end LED TVs ever made
- And now they added A1 for OLED lovers
He said to sell the movie division and make the ps5 a beast.
vpance
Member
Nice summary. Yeah they really have a solid lineup of TVs. 900E and 930E will be very popular when the price drops through the year.
That's not because the phone business isn't profitable or because Sony's core businesses are too different to be relevant, it's all Sony incompetence because camera, screen, design, software are all very important things in phones and Sony is either leader or very competitive in these categories and yet their phones don't manage to capture attention from people.
It's great that Hirai managed to make the company profitable again but if the strategy is to cut everything that doesn't make money instead of fixing what you have Sony will be yes profitable but very stagnant and in the long term that's super bad.
vpance
Member
Yes that was me. Beast doesn't mean selling it for a loss.
The two things aren't really connected. I just wanted to throw in PS5 at the end.
Not sure if they lump their image sensors with their imaging or semiconductor division, but their image sensor tech is literally generations ahead of their competitors. Apple and Samsung both use Sony's sensors in their phones (although some S7 variants used Samsung's own image sensor).
Ehhh, it's more that Sony's mobile division had to cater to the Japanese market, which meant a new phone every six months versus a yearly cycle for other markets. That meant a lack of product support, rushed development, incremental changes, etc.
DriftingSpirit
Member
I think it is just a step at a time. They were bleeding money before and now they are making money. They can work on going beyond that once they are in a much better position overall.
Always wondered why they sell some of the best cameras on the market to their competitors, but do not use them themselves.
My only explanation is that they have some sort of non competing contractual obligation with Apple and whoever else to provide them their best components and not use them in their own sets...
Then they price it accordingly and less people buy it and buy the competitor instead.
They use their newest sensor in their Xperia.
hydrophilic attack
Member
Yes, but Kaz made these decisions. Kaz made the decision to go all in on PS4, even after PS3 was a big money drain.
Kaz gave Playstation the go-ahead to keep putting out great games keep most studios alive, let them continue to release new IP, continue to cater to fans of single-player games after all supposed experts kept telling us that single-player console gaming was dead.
Recognizing, and playing to, the strength of the Playstation brand, even when it's temporarily down for the count, is good leadership. Bad leadership would instead have told them to close most of their internal studios, to let the few remaining studios only pump out sequels to their most bankable franchises instead of trying something new, to keep chasing that GaaS bunny, to double down on squeezing as much as you can with services and microtransactions from your current user base instead of trying to expand it, to buy a sure-to-be bankable success for a few billion, instead of making your own from the ground up
I wonder how much money Sony Music division has made from their Fate/Grand Order mobile game that is holding top rankings for so many months now? Hopefully upcoming financial report will offer some insights.
After the success of that game, Sony quickly announced [at TGS 2016] development of new PlayStation mobile game division [with new Wild Arms and Arc the Lad being most notable games that are under production].
After the success of that game, Sony quickly announced [at TGS 2016] development of new PlayStation mobile game division [with new Wild Arms and Arc the Lad being most notable games that are under production].
Greatest Ever
Member
Great stuff. I enjoy Sony doing well if that means they put out more risky projects like The Last Guardian and Gravity Rush 2.
I dont have any shares but a healthy Sony means PlayStation brand will continue existing
I think you got it backwards?
Seems to me like healthy Playstation means Sony will continue existing
hydrophilic attack
Member
They should go back to making compact flagship models. Z3 compact and Z5 compact are great
tiredheadcrab
Member
Thats good. To be honest I dont see them claiming that Walkman status anytime soon.
Their phones seem okay. The Xperia XZ Premium looks nice, and has some nice features, but its missing a finger print sensor for the USA version in 2017. I doubt they would do well here as the high end market for smart phones is mostly fought between Apple and Samsung. While the low end is Samsung and Xiami and Huawei. I have never seen any of their phones in a store let alone a carrier. It seems like they arent even trying so I could give zero fucks about them here in the states.
I think their movie division will do just fine this year though. Spiderman looks amazing and they have The Dark Tower.
However it does seem that they are more the Playstation brand similar to how Apple is the iPhone brand.
Their phones seem okay. The Xperia XZ Premium looks nice, and has some nice features, but its missing a finger print sensor for the USA version in 2017. I doubt they would do well here as the high end market for smart phones is mostly fought between Apple and Samsung. While the low end is Samsung and Xiami and Huawei. I have never seen any of their phones in a store let alone a carrier. It seems like they arent even trying so I could give zero fucks about them here in the states.
I think their movie division will do just fine this year though. Spiderman looks amazing and they have The Dark Tower.
However it does seem that they are more the Playstation brand similar to how Apple is the iPhone brand.
Sir_Crocodile
Member
Xperia phones are great. Still using my 2013 Z1, and apart from the battery starting to become less effective (which is inevitable), it still works a treat.
Coulomb_Barrier
Member
Interesting about Spiderman movies and the Venom and Carnage characters.
Problem with the latter is Cletus Kasidy is a serial killer and wouldn't lend well to a family-rated movie, where all the money is. Deadpool is an exception though. Venom's pseudo-appearance in Spiderman 3 was baffling but again he's a great character.
With those three characters and G Goblin they could grow Spiderman movies to be bigger than Avengers imo, but the direction is all over the place.
Problem with the latter is Cletus Kasidy is a serial killer and wouldn't lend well to a family-rated movie, where all the money is. Deadpool is an exception though. Venom's pseudo-appearance in Spiderman 3 was baffling but again he's a great character.
With those three characters and G Goblin they could grow Spiderman movies to be bigger than Avengers imo, but the direction is all over the place.
X compact is great, better than z5 in most aspect even, except for raw GPU power.
Yep. The xbr line are freaking beasts
Toni
Member
They have James Bond and Spider-man.
Which both amass over 600 million worldwide usually.
They also released Kate Beckinsale's Underworld and Passengers earlier this year.
Other high profiles movies from Sony / Columbia Pictures later this year are the Jumanji remake with The Rock and The Smurfs (family-friendly easy money).
At least on the movie box offfice front, they won't be doing bad at all this year.
They will have Spider-man do the heavy lifting for them.
Dash_Riprock
Member
I thought Sony was about to lose Bond?
There will be a Jumanji remake? THIS YEAR? Hype!
Toni
Member
Skyfall was the biggest and highest-grossing James Bond movie ever and it all happened thanks to Sony Pictures. It did 1.1 billion in the box office.
Sony won't loose the license.
Warner Brothers have been trying for the longest to snatch James Bond from Sony, but after the incredible success that was Skyfall...it'll never happen.