SONY SINGS HAPPY TUNE DESPITE Q2 DIP

Despite a slight dip in the second quarter of fiscal 2018, Sony’s Recorded Music revenue is up 10% for the first half of fiscal 2018 to $3.46b.

Streaming revenue continues to rise at Rob Stringer-led Sony Music, pulling in $512m in the quarter that ended 9/30, and representing 54% of recorded music’s total income of $946m. Streaming numbers are up 8% over the year-ago period, while physical sales are down 26% and downloads are off by 20%.

Sony attributed the revenue decline in the quarter—down 2.7% vs. 2017—to both a decrease in recorded-music sales and the impact of a new accounting standard.

Despite the three-month dip, Sony has upped its forecast for the year in recorded music, predicting an 8% rise to $7.35b based on the impact of the full acquisition of EMI Publishing and the music division’s popular videogame, Fate/Grand Order.

Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki said the EMI deal will close within the calendar year and that the impact will be a $224m spike in revenue and a $986m impact on operating income, income before income taxes and net income.

“This impact includes the recording of a noncash step-up gain on Sony’s approximately 40% equity interest and the impact on the post-closing financial statements of the company changing from an equity affiliate to a consolidated subsidiary,” he said in announcing the company’s results.

Key titles in the quarter were Travis Scott’s ASTROWORLD, Luke Combs’ This One’s for You and George Ezra’s Staying at Tamara’s.

While Sony talks movies, semi-conductors and other operations in its financial reports, it's the demand for online gaming services that has the corporation to up its annual profit outlook by 30% with the gaming business as its biggest profit driver. For Sony stockholders, every time Fortnite is downloaded on a PlayStation, an angel gets its wings.