Sony Posts a Profit as PS4 Sales Reach 29.3 Million

Sony has announced total PS4 sales of 29.3 million since November 2013, including four million in the three months ending September 30th. 

This was before the recently implemented price cut. By way of comparion, the PS2, still the best selling console in history, had sold 24.99 million units by the same time in its life cycle. The PS3 had sold 16.6 million by this point, while the Xbox 360 reached 13.4 million. Microsoft does not report Xbox One sales figures. 

Though certainly impressive, Sony's PS4 total is somewhat behind the Wii, which had amassed 34.55 million during a comparable period.

Sony's Game and Network Services division, to which PlayStation belongs, reported sales of 360.7 billion yen, a rise of 16.5% compared to the second quarter of 2014. The division's operating income was 23.9 billion yen, an increase of 13.1 billion yen. 

The company attributed this "significant increase" to an increase in PS4 software sales even as PS3 game sales decline. The Game and Network Services division currently generates more revenue than all of Sony's other divisions. 

Sony now expects to sell 17.5 million PS4s by the end of the current financial year, March 31st 2016 – up from the previous estimate of 16.5 million. 14.8 million PS4s were sold during the 2014 financial year. 

Overall, the company reproted a net income of 33.6 billion yet for the quater, its fourth straight profit after years of losses and a sizable restructuring drive undertaken by CEO Kaz Hirai, the former PlayStation boss, which led to thousands of job cuts and asset sales.