Sony Corporation outlined a new plan for profitability on Thursday — a plan that banks on burgeoning 3D technology to pull the company out of its fiscal tailspin.
Sony said that it is headed toward its second consecutive billion-dollar loss in the fiscal year ending in March 2010. The company expects to lose 95 billion yen (or about $1 billion). During fiscal 2009, the company suffered a 98.9 billion yen loss — its first loss in 14 years.
"This is a new Sony,” Sony’s chief executive Howard Stringer told investors. “The new team here is as digitally connected as our devices.”
He admitted that while “our work is already bearing fruit, we still have more work to do.”
Stringer stressed a more “nimble” company. In the past year, the company has cut nearly 20,000 staffers, or about 12 percent, from its global workforce.
Sony, maker of Bravia televisions and Playstation consoles, said that 3D TVs will account for $11.2 billion in new revenue over the next three years.
Playstations will be outfitted with the 3D technology, Sony said. The company expects its flat panel TV and Playstation businesses to be profitable again by the fiscal year ending in March 2011.
"We see 3D as a pillar of our strategy," said Hiroshi Yoshioka, a senior Sony executive. "We are all getting geared up on this theme."
Meanwhile, the company’s movie unit — which has churned out hits like “2012” and “This Is It” this fall — has generated $1.3 billion in ticket sales this year through Nov. 15, according Bloomberg, citing Box Office Mojo figures.
"Sony is the only company with end-to-end filming production, 3D conversion, home delivery and home display of 3D content," Stringer said.
