Sony losing money on every TV it makes

[Smokey]

http://images.smh.com.au/2011/11/14/2771334/bg_Howard_Stringer1_20111114094228444893-420x0.jpg

CEO of Sony Howard Stringer speaking to The Wall Street Journal, admit sony loses money on every TV it makes.He said companies had backed themselves into a tough market by racing to gain television marketshare. "We can't continue selling TV sets [the way we have been]. Every TV set we all make loses money," said Stringer.

So Sony has been planning a four screen approach to television that includes mobile devices and tablets. “Different kind of TV set” that will separate it from other manufacturers, CEO Howard Stringer told the WSJ.

The details about this new TV are sketchy, but it could be related to Sony’s four-screen strategy, which aims to connect the TV, PC, smartphone and tablet in one platform. Stringer also expressed admiration for Apple’s “well organised” design, saying Sony is finally ready to “compete with Steve Jobs”.

Sony has been one of the few major manufacturers supporting Google’s Android-based Google TV, but so far Sony hasn’t been very successful with Google TV products, either.

Sony's CEO Says Every TV It Makes Loses Money (http://gizmodo.com/5858511/sonys-ceo-says-every-tv-it-makes-loses-money)

[Worf101]

"who ate my cheese?" Sony was the rat's ass when they were the ones picking off slow moving, fossilized American electronics companies in the 70' 80's and some extent, 90's. But when real competition sprang up from Korea and China that produced set's as good OR BETTER for less money, Sony began to resemble those American companies it put to death decades, old, slow and with no clue. What's the last truly innovative product we had from Sony? The Walkman?

Still had Sony kept up its impeccable record for quality and service people might have paid a premium for the Sony name like some fools do for Bose, but they blew that too by putting out sketchy products and then not standing behind them. Now they've no more brand cache than anyone else. Combine this loss of status with manmade and natural disasters left and right and you've a company on the ropes searching for its lost soul.

Worf

[kexodusc]

What he's really saying is "hey everyone, put your prices up and we'll follow suit".

[Mr Peabody]

Worf, has a wonderful way with words, I couldn't have said it better. :)

[ken88]

May be Sony ought to make more laptops than TV's!!! Their laptops are pretty good compared to other makes and if they can make them cheaper there will be more people to buy them and thus, increase their sales and profits.

[Worf101]

Worf, has a wonderful way with words, I couldn't have said it better. :)

I wish I wasn't right but I hate to see companies or nations for that matter, go through this completely avoidable decline and fall. It IS truly harder to "stay on top' than to get there but damn not that hard. The true innovators, steely eyed capitalists and starry eyed forward looking thinkers found and make truly great companies. When they die out, get forced out or move on to the next challenge they're often replaced by calcified spiritual midgets and yes men who are only interested in staying "on the board" and increasing the size of their quarterly bonuses. When this happens to any enterprise, be it public or private, it's usually not long for this world. But it doesn't have to be so. Quck nimble thinking, the ability to calculate risk and then roll the dice, this is what makes or breaks companies. Jobs had it. I look at this elmer fudd reject above and I don't feel the magic. If he's Sony's savior, they're doomed.

Worf

[Smokey]

Worf, you make it sound like Sony is all gloom and doomed :D

Sony fit the description of a bloated company. They pretty much lost beig inovator when they expand their interest in entertainment indusrty and other venues. Sony and Panasonic used to be the top dog in quality HT components from Japan. But now Panasonic seem to be only company which fit that description.

[Woochifer]

This is old news. My understanding is that Sony has been losing money on its TV division for about eight years now.

Sony's fundamental problem is that they did not adequately plan for the market transition over to flat panel TV. Sony was a technological leader with CRT and LCoS, neither of which translate well to flat panels. With both LCD and plasma technology, Sony was a laggard, and when the market moved away from RPTVs and CRTs, Sony was screwed.

Just to maintain a presence in the flat panel market, Sony had to enter into joint ventures with Samsung and others. Sony would still spec their TVs, but they had much lower margins than before because Sony did not own the technology and was only a partner in the manufacturing operation. In the mainstream market, Sony has lost both its technical edge and its market share. Couple that with the fact that their TVs maintain lower margins to begin with, and that all adds up to nearly a decade of losses for their TV division.

Sony still makes some of the best front projectors on the market (where their LCoS technology is still viable), and they are a leader in developing OLED panels. But, those are niche markets and don't do anything to help them in their current predicament.

To give you an idea of where Sony stands, right now most of the company's profits come from their financial services division, even though half of the revenue comes from electronics.

How does Sony make money? Life insurance! – SplatF (http://www.splatf.com/2011/11/sony-profits/)

http://cdn.splatf.com/w/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/sony-by-segment.gif

[Smokey]

Thanks for link Wooch. It seem I was right when saying Sony is bloated company with their tentacles spreading not only to entertainment industry, but also to financial services. And it is reflected in their quarterly earning as it does fluctuate widely with the market. It seem there should be some serious restructur in order.

[Woochifer]

Thanks for link Wooch. It seem I was right when saying Sony is bloated company with their tentacles spreading not only to entertainment industry, but also to financial services. And it is reflected in their quarterly earning as it does fluctuate widely with the market. It seem there should be some serious restructur in order.

But, you're applying an American bias to a Japanese business. If you look at how many of the Asian electronics giants are structured, most of them are big conglomerates with semi-autonomous units. That's a reflection of how they do business, and how the laws in those countries are setup.

Despite their global presence, over 1/3 of Sony's market is in the Japanese home market, and that's where nearly all of their financial services revenue is generated. Sony's not a bloated company because of its financial services, since that division is actually carrying the entire company. Where Sony has lost its way is with its core electronics business. Sony as a company has stayed profitable for the most part (and those fluctuations you're observing are normal seasonal revenue variations). The electronics division has lost money for 4 straight years, and my understanding is that TV production has lost money for 8 straight years.

But, one factor that you need to also consider is the high yen value, which has had a very negative impact on nearly all export-oriented Japanese companies, from electronics to automobiles and other products.

[Worf101]

Never too old to learn something new. Thanks for teaching an old dog new tricks.

Worf

[Hairsonfire]

"who ate my cheese?" Sony was the rat's ass when they were the ones picking off slow moving, fossilized American electronics companies in the 70' 80's and some extent, 90's. But when real competition sprang up from Korea and China that produced set's as good OR BETTER for less money, Sony began to resemble those American companies it put to death decades, old, slow and with no clue. What's the last truly innovative product we had from Sony? The Walkman?

Still had Sony kept up its impeccable record for quality and service people might have paid a premium for the Sony name like some fools do for Bose, but they blew that too by putting out sketchy products and then not standing behind them. Now they've no more brand cache than anyone else. Combine this loss of status with manmade and natural disasters left and right and you've a company on the ropes searching for its lost soul.

Worf

Worf - what about the PS3? That is one hell of a platform given its infinitely upgradable design. Just my two cents.