Sony has sold the historic battery division to Murata for an undisclosed amount. Even though the plan was announced on Tuesday, the two companies will not sign a binding agreement until October. Sony is expecting to finalize the whole deal by March 2017.
In a bid to earn profits, the company is selling off various business divisions and properties. The company had sold terrible loss-making VAIO computer division a few years back including its New York and Tokyo headquarters. Moreover, Sony has closed down its profitable sensor segment including TV.
Murata Plans
Even though Murata is not a familiar name among households like Sony, it’s a major player in the electronics components business. The company also developed robots, which includes bicycle-riding Murata Boy and a group of robotic cheerleaders. According to company sources, Sony’s battery division will be merged into its energy department.
Sony Q1 2016 income
In the meantime, Sony has reported a net income of $205 million for the first quarter ended June 30 starting from April 1. According to the official report, the sale and operating revenue decreased by 10.8 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous fiscal year. The decrease was mainly due to the impact of fluctuating foreign exchange rates, sluggish mobile segment sales including the decline of the financial services sector.
Sony’s reduced income reason
The company also revealed that the decrease in income is also attributed to not-so-good semiconductor and imaging product sales. The company also stated that 2016 Kumamoto Earthquakes also made a significant impact on the income. If you look at the figures of 2015, Sony had posted a profit four times larger and was doing much better than the current condition.
Despite low revenue, the mobile division posted a profit of $4 million, which clearly signal the positive fortunes of the company. However, the foreign exchange rate fluctuation derailed the mobile division to earn more income due to a 4.4 billion yen positive impact.
Sony has only sold 3.1 million smartphones in the last three months, which is a drastic reduction from the previous figure of 7.2 million.
Sony Xperia X overpriced
In 2016, the company released Xperia X, which was very much overpriced. We haven’t seen the launch of budget smartphones from the Japanese smartphone company. Moreover, the company is finding it difficult to beat companies such as Xiaomi and LeEco, which are offering budget devices.
Sony Xperia X Performance release delayed
Even though the company announced the launch of Xperia X Performance at Mobile World Congress in February, the actual release was delayed. According to industry analysts, the company based in Japan is on the verge to launch its next flagship smartphone with Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow. The device is expected to be unveiled at IFA in September.
We expect the company to launch a smartphone in September to take over Apple iPhone 7. The pricing of smartphones is the big problem. They are usually available at a higher cost, which is not affordable to common people.
If Sony really wants to improve its financial position it should release several budget devices with the latest technology at an affordable price.
The road ahead for Sony
The big million dollar question is whether Sony should continue with the smartphone business. Going by the financial results, the future doesn’t look bright for the mobile department. The main reason is the competitors have already claimed that they have shipped 100 million units per year.
Apple managed to ship around 40 million iPhones and this is causing Sony to worry. According to estimates, the company is predicting sale of over 19 million handsets by the end of 2016.
