Sony to Cut TV, Smartphone Lineup, Sees Growth in PlayStation

Nov 25, 2014 08:11 AM EST | Matt Mercuro

Sony plans to cut its TV and mobile phone product line-ups to cut costs, counting on multi-billion dollar revenue surges for its buoyant PlayStation 4 and image sensor businesses by 2017.

After losing ground to rivals like Apple and Samsung in consumer electronics, Sony said on Tuesday its goal for TV and smartphones to turn a profit, even if sales drop as much as 30 percent.

"We're not aiming for size or market share but better profits," Hiroki Totoki, Sony's newly appointed chief of its mobile division told an investors' conference, according to Reuters.

A bad showing by its Xperia smartphones has hurt Sony lately, and more details on plans for the unit will be unveiled before end-March.

Sony is also not planning on renewing its FIFA soccer sponsorship contract in 2015, according to Reuters. The company was aiming to boost sales for its videogame division by a quarter to as much as 1.6 trillion yen ($13.6 billion).

Sony expects its videogame division to be helped out by personalized TV, video and music distribution services that should life revenue per user, according to Reuters.

The company expects sales for its devices division to increase 70 percent to as much as 1.5 trillion yen. Sony's sensor sales are already robust, with Apple using them in its iPhones while Chinese handset manufacturers are adopting them.

Last week, when discussing its entertainment units, Sony said it was looking to lift its movie and TV programming revenues by a third during the next three years or so, according to Reuters.

"There's a lot of expectation for Sony now, but nothing is sure until there are results," said Ichiyoshi Asset Management chief fund manager Akino Mitsushige, according to Reuters. "Getting out of the mobile market is an option, but they can't do that now, so they will need to make some fundamental changes."

Shares in Sony finished 6 percent higher based on the belief that the new measures show a greater sense of restructuring urgency by the company.

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