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Sony's Xperia smartphone business has finally stopped shrinking

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By Joshua Swingle

Published: Oct 28, 2020, 5:38 AM

Android Sony

Sony's Xperia smartphone business has finally stopped shrinking

Sony used to be one of the largest smartphone manufacturers in the world, but in recent years it’s been reduced to a niche brand with limited availability in Europe and the United States.

Now, new data suggests the worst may finally be over.

Sony Xperia sales remained stable last quarter

Sony shipped 600,000 Xperia smartphones in the quarter ending September 30, 2020. That may seem like nothing when measured up to the millions of units sold by Apple and Samsung, but it compares well with previous results.

In the equivalent 2019 quarter, Sony sold the same number of Xperia smartphones, which means sales have finally stopped stopped shrinking after half a decade of (almost) constant year-on-year drops.

Considering the circumstances, that's certainly no mean feat. The global economy is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and smartphone demand isn’t entirely back to normal levels.

Sony still expects the Xperia business to post a profit

There’s more good news, too. The Xperia smartphone division generated $759.46 million in revenue last quarter, up slightly from the $746.04 million generated a year earlier.

Sony revealed in August that its Mobile Communications division was on track to post its first yearly profit in four years, and that continues to be the case following the most recent results.

The Japanese company hasn’t provided detailed performance predictions for the current quarter, but with the recent Xperia 5 II release and the upcoming holiday season, a sales jump is to be expected.