Sony’s game and network services division grew revenues 27 percent in the second fiscal quarter ended September 30, the Japanese electronics company reported Monday night. Sony also raised its forecasts slightly higher than it estimated in July. As a result, the overall revenues for the whole company are expected to be higher.
Revenues were $4.88 billion in the quarter for the group, compared with $3.84 billion in the same quarter a year earlier.Operating income was $800 million, compared with $490 million a year earlier.
Game and network service revenues for the full fiscal year are now expected to be 8 percent higher than previously expected. Sony credited the higher forecast to expected higher game software sales for the growth, as well as the impact of foreign exchange rates, and higher than expected sales of PlayStation 4 hardware. Sony also said that it expects higher than expected sales for the PlayStation Plus paid membership service. Operating income was higher than forecast in the quarter for the same reasons.
In the second quarter, Sony said it sold 3.9 million PlayStation 4 consoles. Sony is benefiting from strong sales of Spider-Man, which sold 3.3 million units in its first three days in September. It is also likely to benefit from strong demand for third-party games such as Red Dead Redemption 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, and Battlefield V.