Sony Loses $3.2B for Fiscal Year on Earthquake Fallout — DVD Declines Didn’t Help

Sales of movie unit fall 15 percent in fiscal year due to declinesin DVD market and box office disaster “How Do You Know”

Sony lost $3.2 billion on revenues of $88 billion for the most recent fiscal year, the company said on Thursday. 

The sluggish results for the 12-month period ended in March represent the company's widest annual net loss in 16 years.

The bleak earnings picture was partly attributable to collateral damage from the Japanese earthquake and tsunami. The company also disclosed movie declines and higher TV revenue during the past fiscal year. 

However, the company did offer a rosier forecast for the upcoming fiscal year, projecting revenues of $90 billion  and a profit of  $963 million.

After previously projecting that the year would be a profitable, Sony previewed its revised earnings forecast last Tuesday. Nine Sony plants were damaged because of the natural disasters, and other plants were temporarily closed and distribution of the company's tech products was disrupted. 

Sales at Sony Pictures dropped 15 percent to $7.3 billion. The cause was attributable to declines in the overall DVD market and box office dud "How Do You Know." It was also, Sony said, a reflection of the yen against the U.S. dollar. also cited movie declines also took their toll on the company's bottom line.

Sony copped to "significant" declines in the international theatrical and worldwide home entertainment markets, but failed to break out the actual losses. Among the division's hits last year were "Karate Kid" and "Salt."

According to the company, higher TV revenue helped offset the decline in movie revenue.

Music sales were another sore point for the company. Despite hits such as Michael Jackson's "Michael" and "Glee" cast albums, sales for the sector dropped to $5.7 billion.

The company has also been under attack by hackers the past two months. Its PlayStation Network was down for weeks, and this week more reports of hacking surfaced — this time on music sites in Greece and Japan. Any damage from that won't show up until the next fiscal year, however.  

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