Thanks to the PlayStation 4, sales in Sony’s Game & Network Services division increased 83.2 percent year-over-year to 309.5 billion yen ($2.77 billion) according to the company’s consolidated financial results (PDF link) for the second quarter ended Sept. 30, 2014.
On a constant currency basis, a calculation designed to eliminate the effects from exchange rate fluctuations, sales increased 74 percent year-over-year for the quarter that began July 1, 2014. Sales to external customers, year-over-year, increased 97 percent.
“This significant increase was primarily due to the contribution from PS4 hardware sales,” the document reads, “a significant increase in network services revenue related to the introduction of the PS4 and the contribution from PS4 software sales, partially offset by a decrease in PlayStation 3 (‘PS3′) hardware and PS3 software sales.”
Sony’s G&NS segment reported operating income of 21.8 billion yen ($200 million). In the same quarter last year, the company reported an operating loss of $4.2 billion yen ($37.62 million). Sony credited the same circumstances as above for the increase, which was partially offset by the PS3 sales decrease.
Sony now expects its G&NS sales and operating income to be higher than it predicted in July, “primarily due to the favorable impact of foreign exchange rates and the strong performance of the PS4.”
For the company as a whole, sales reached 1.90 trillion yen ($17.45 billion), a 7.5 percent increase year-over-year. The company again credited a “significant increase in G&NS segment sales” from the PS4, as well as image sensor sales and “the favorable impact of foreign exchange rates.”
Ultimately, however, Sony recorded an 85.6 billion yen ($766.60 million) operating loss, “primarily” due to an “impairment of goodwill” in the Mobile Communications division.