Sony pockets $1.9 billion, as sensor sales soar while PlayStation numbers plummet

Sony Group Corp has seen a 10% rise in operating profit in the last 3 months, despite nosediving sales of PlayStation 5 videogame consoles. 

The tech giant’s stats were buoyed by good sales for image sensors for camera phones, along with other areas of its gaming sales, and Sony has been confident enough to raise its full-year profit forecast by 3%.

Image sensor profits tripled to ¥36.6 billion ($247 million / £194 million), tipping the group total for the quarter to the end of June to ¥279 billion ($1.9 billion / £1.5 billion). 

Despite reaching an impressive milestone of 61.7 million units sold since its launch in 2020, PS5 sales have declined year on year as the console enters the final phase of its lifespan, dropping from 3.3 million in the first quarter of the 2024 financial year to 2.4 million in the same period of the 2025 financial year (April to June 2024). 

The decline in PlayStation sales cannot have come as a surprise to Sony, which had previously adjusted its overall sales target for the financial year to 18 million units, down from last year's 21. 

Downturned PS5 sales can be partially attributed to Sony’s decision to not release new games from its heavyweight series such as Spider-Man, The Last of Us, God of War, Ghost of Tsushima, Ratchet and Clank, and Horizon. 

Another factor affecting sales across the broader gaming landscape is supply chain issues. There has long been a global semiconductor shortage affecting various tech sectors, which also impacted the availability of PlayStation units. 

Despite these issues, Sony hiked its full-year profit forecast to ¥1.3 trillion ($8.8 billion / £6.9 billion), helped by the impact of foreign exchange rates. 

Big fluctuations in the yen recently have affected the Japanese stock market, while an interest hike by the Bank of Japan and weak labor data from the US have fuelled recession fears. 

Sony has said that its assumed exchange rate for the year is approximately 145 yen to the dollar, against 146.9 at the moment.

"We are extremely concerned about the sudden fluctuations in exchange rates and possibility of economic downturn, particularly in the United States," said Sony president, Hiroki Totoki, in an earnings briefing.

With Sony maintaining its longstanding stranglehold on the image sensor market, particularly in the smartphone sector, at least this is one pillar of the business that will remain a bright spot for the company. 

Take a look at our guides to the best Sony cameras, the best Sony lenses and the best Sony phones.