Sony is bleeding money - business strategy discussion

[boommoob1]

Right, but some of us posited that $50 gets them to flat from last years numbers which as we've talked about, missed. They are already down for the FY both in sell-in and sell-through for the countries we get numbers and if you go by Nintendo slides they are just barely above last year but still hovering around the 50k/week mark. You believe that there are enough people in waiting where $50 gets Sony not only back to flat but above last years numbers, my opinion was the opposite. We will get some % increases from retailers in different regions I'm sure.

Under 2 million extra over 8 months seems a pretty fair bet to me. About a 14 % increase in sales from here on out.

 

[NavNucST3]

Under 2 million extra over 8 months seems a pretty fair bet to me. About a 14 % increase in sales from here on out.

Though there are some differences this time what you are saying is what many said regarding hitting 15M last FY "they only need another...".

 

[NavNucST3]

Media Create numbers are out, the PS3 gets ~47% increase in sell-through. This puts them flat with last years numbers for the week Sony is going to need some massive increases in sell-through to make up the 150k gap they currently have on the CY.

 

[boommoob1]

Media Create numbers are out, the PS3 gets ~47% increase in sell-through. This puts them flat with last years numbers for the week Sony is going to need some massive increases in sell-through to make up the 150k gap they currently have on the CY.

Well the difference between $249 and $199 is them losing alot of money and not alot else at this stage of the game.

 

[boommoob1]

Can i start off by saying Sony are not bleeding money or in financial trouble they have $12billion in cash reserves. Only in the gaming world would people say the the sceptics are having there day after the worst economic crash in decades, and a devastating earthquake/tsunami. Sony have invested very heavily into there software in the last few years and we'l see the fruits of that in the coming years!.

I'l actually go and quote myself after actually looking at Sony's balance sheet. $12billion in cash and cash equivalents and around $8billion in short term investments. Effectively $20billion in cash reserves. More than double what it was 5 years ago. Not interesting?.

 

[AlphaWolf]

I'l actually go and quote myself after actually looking at Sony's balance sheet. $12billion in cash and cash equivalents and around $8billion in short term investments. Effectively $20billion in cash reserves. More than double what it was 5 years ago. Not interesting?.

Compared to the $72 billion Apple has? or the $55 billion MS has? No not really.

And are you sure that $8 billion isn't included in the $12?

 

[boommoob1]

Compared to the $72 billion Apple has? or the $55 billion MS has? No not really.

And are you sure that $8 billion isn't included in the $12?

Apple has around $33billion unless you want Sony to come out on top, MS $50. My point wasnt fanboy wars but Sonys true picture of the last few years.

 

[AlphaWolf]

Apple has around $33billion unless you want Sony to come out on top, MS $50. My point wasnt fanboy wars but Sonys true picture of the last few years.

No, Apple really has around $70 billion in cash. Many big corporations have a lot of cash right now.

 

[boommoob1]

No, Apple really has around $70 billion in cash. Many big corporations have a lot of cash right now.

Apple has about $36billion in cash, equivalents and short term investments which is basically excess cash. The rest is long term investments which is basically part of the Apple business. I dont know why the Yank media are counting long term investments as part of the cash pile, unusual.

 

[AlphaWolf]

Apple has about $36billion in cash, equivalents and short term investments which is basically excess cash. The rest is long term investments which is basically part of the Apple business. I dont know why the Yank media are counting long term investments as part of the cash pile, unusual.

To put that in perspective, Apple (AAPL) most recent earning statement shows that it was holding $76.156 billion in cash and marketable securities as of June 25.

http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2011/07/29/the-u-s-treasury-has-less-cash-on-hand-than-apple-inc/

seems I was a bit low.

The point is that companies are holding onto a lot of cash right now because they don't want to invest it in new production while the economy is weak. It's not a sign of any failure to be holding onto a lot of cash right now as many very successful companies are doing the same. Just normal corporate operations for the current market.

 

[frogblast]

Apple has about $36billion in cash, equivalents and short term investments which is basically excess cash. The rest is long term investments which is basically part of the Apple business. I dont know why the Yank media are counting long term investments as part of the cash pile, unusual.

Those assets are technically long-term investments, but almost entirely in marketable/liquid form. Normal accounting procedures say that they are not available as cash, but Apple seems to prefer its long term assets to be quickly and easily sellable. Think US Treasuries, which are usually considered as good as cash, even though they may be 30 year notes.

 

[boommoob1]

Big losses are expected i think. Sony will be a case study in how to destroy a corporation in years to come. Idei turned Sony into a series of fiefdoms, Stringer into a warzone.

 

[patsu]

Have you heard a lot of in-fighting in Sony now ? What are they fighting about ?

 

[boommoob1]

Have you heard a lot of in-fighting in Sony now ? What are they fighting about ?

Sony has been endlessly fighting since atleast 2000. Idei was a mistake. He then handed the job to Stringer a tech NON ENTITY. Remember Kuturagi stating Sony were in decline?. The $600 ps3 was Kuturagi jumping the gun in trying to control the living room because he and Ohga knew Sony were in dire straits. Ken wasn't crazy.

 

[boommoob1]

I've already warned you about off topic into just ranting against Sony's management. This thread is about Sony PSS. There are explanations about how PSS can make Sony money on other platforms. If you're not capable of discussing a broader view of Sony than "Hirai and Stringer suck" then please stop wasting our time with irrelevant replies.

If you actually want to engage in a proper discussion, outline a business strategy for Sony for the next few years using PSS and explaining a case where not releasing on Android will do wonders for Sony's business.

Business strategy is SYNERGY coupled with INVESTING in NEW products. They've still got the money sitting in the bank to do it they just need an Ibuka, Morita, Ohga. How much is R&D etc for Vita?. $1billion+ why isnt $1billion being spent on an iphone, Galaxy rival etc etc etc?. All there products are legacy products they dont release NEW products .

 

[boommoob1]

It is exactly the old Sony that couldn't unify its various divisions, couldn't make the transition to software and services that has been beaten by Apple and Samsung. How obvious is that? How far back are we talking here about Sony anyway? Casette player Sony? Playstation 1 Sony? Personally I think Sony's success with Playstation 1 was partly luck. Playstation 2 however were when Sony's game division really hit its stride. But it overreached with Playstation 3. That is fine - everyone needs to learn lessons, and in a highly competitive market you can still make some mistakes, as long as you learn from them.



What you are seeing right now is still for a large part the result of decisions made 5-10 years ago. Personally I can't judge what Stringer has done, though he does seem to have done some important political work at the very least, working hard to allow a culture change. But I'm not versed enough into Sony politics to judge.

I can however see that Idei and Hirai at the very least appear to be doing what is necessary. Whether Sony is doing it well enough, I cannot judge. This will have to play out over time. Vita will basically be the first important fruit of the 'new' Sony, and it will be interesting to see how it pans out. They have some catching up to do, which is hard in a competitive market.

New Sony goes back over a decade. They were at war in the late 90's. Idei, Stringer, Hirai' s legacy is where we are now. Noone seems to understand why Sony are in the shithouse.

 

[NavNucST3]

Another re-org

...Chief Executive Officer Howard Stringer has said TVs remain vital to Sony’s sale of related products, including Blu- ray players and video cameras.
Sony makes LCD and LED televisions, sets that connect to the Internet using Google Inc.’s Android operating system and models that let users watch video in 3-D. The company uses other manufacturers, such as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., to produce lower-end sets.

...

 

[ERP]

I'm intrigued where your insight of Sony internal politics comes from. Are you an employee?

 

[habbe]

hmm. Is this a smart move.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/27/us-sonyericsson-idUSTRE79Q19J20111027

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Business strategy is SYNERGY coupled with INVESTING in NEW products. They've still got the money sitting in the bank to do it they just need an Ibuka, Morita, Ohga. How much is R&D etc for Vita?. $1billion+ why isnt $1billion being spent on an iphone, Galaxy rival etc etc etc?. All there products are legacy products they dont release NEW products .

You still haven't presented a strategy. Invest in new products - right. What should they be building? Where does PSS fit in with that?