14 DAY TRIAL // Japanese-Swedish mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson announced today its financial results for the fourth quarter of the last year and for the entire year 2009, and posted a loss of Euro 40 million for the three months period ended December 31, and a loss of Euro 878 million for the entire year, excluding restructuring charges. However, the company seems to be on the right track, as its loss narrowed down from the loss of Euro 198 million it posted for the previous quarter, and registered shipments sequentially increased by 3 percent in the time frame.
According to the company, it managed to ship a number of 14.6 million units in the forth quarter of the last year, up from the 14.1 million shipped in Q3, though down 40 percent from the 24.2 million units shipped in the same time frame a year before. During the three months period, the company registered sales of Euro 1,750 million, marking an increase of 8 percent quarter-on-quarter, though showing a decrease of 40 percent on a yearly basis. Sony Ericsson noted that the sequential increase was mainly the result of successful sales of Satio and Aino phones, though on a yearly basis sales were affected by the economical turmoil. Average Selling Price (ASP) for period went up sequentially by 5 percent to Euro 120, mainly courtesy of a more favorable product mix.
“The refreshed portfolio, coupled with the business transformation programme has started to positively impact our financial results. Continued cost saving activities and resource realignment are necessary in order to build a leaner, more efficient organisation capable of meeting the demands of the changing competitive landscape. We will continue to focus on returning the company to profitability by establishing Sony Ericsson as the communication entertainment brand based on an exciting portfolio of mid- and high-end products, such as our recently announced Android-based phone, the XPERIA X10. 2010 will still be challenging as the full benefit of cost improvements will not impact results until the second half of the year, however we are confident that our business is on the right track,” stated Bert Nordberg, president, Sony Ericsson.
According to the handset vendor, the global phone market remained flat year-on-year in units, and it believes it managed to account for around 5 percent of the entire market in the fourth quarter of 2009. At the same time, the company also says that the entire market went down by 8 percent in 2009 when compared to the previous year, reaching a volume of around 1.1 billion units. However, Sony Ericsson's market share for the entire year 2009 is expected to have been of 5 percent too. As for the ongoing year, the company expects for the entire market to register a slight growth, something that other companies and industry watcher also predicted.
