Sony Pictures Profit Drops to $51 Million in Third Quarter

Sony blames decline on lack of a late year hit like 2018’s “Venom”

Jumanji Next Level
Sony

Sony Pictures’ parent company reported that the Culver City film studio saw profit drop roughly 50%, to $51 million, during its fiscal third quarter.

Japan-based Sony said the film division’s quarterly revenue was $2.2 billion, down from the $2.5 billion the company reported during the same quarter a year ago. The studio’s profit dropped to $51 million from $102 million.

Sony said the decline was due mainly to the lack of a strong late-year release like 2018’s “Venom.” Released in October 2018, that film grossed $855 million worldwide.

The studio’s major releases during the quarter, which ended Dec. 31, 2019, were “Zombieland: Double Tap,” which grossed $122 million and spent 75 days in theaters during the quarter, and “Jumanji: The Next Level,” which has made $509 million worldwide and spent 19 days in theaters during the quarter.

Sony’s critically acclaimed, Oscar-nominated “Little Women” was also released during the quarter, along with “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood,” “Charlie’s Angels” and “Black and Blue.”

The motion picture arm, which includes Sony’s theatrical, home entertainment and TV distribution divisions, accounted for $930 million of Sony’s revenue. TV productions made up $669 million, and media networks added $568 million of Sony’s Pictures’ overall revenue.

At Sony Pictures’ parent company, the electronics conglomerate reported that revenue hit JPY2.4 trillion, roughly $22.6 billion according to Morningstar Japanese yen to U.S. dollar conversion. The company reported net profit of JPY229 billion ($2.1 billion).

Revenue for Sony’s music division was JPY125 billion ($1.2 billion).

The gaming and network services division saw total sales for the third quarter fall to JPY632 billion ($5.8 billion) from JPY790 billion ($7.3 billion). The division also saw PlayStation 4 console sales fall to 6.1 million from 8.1 million.

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