© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The Sony logo is displayed outside the company’s headquarters in Tokyo, Japan on February 16, 2023. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo
By Sam Nussi
TOKYO (Reuters) – Sony (NYSE:) Group Corp. said on Wednesday that the success of HBO’s hit drama “The Last Of Us” is boosting sales of the game series it’s based on, in a landmark case for the group’s popular relaunch. MLM.
“We can see very clearly that every time an episode of that show went down, sales of the game increased very exponentially,” Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan said in a briefing to investors.
The show’s success is a prime example of Sony’s efforts to drive business across its various lines of business after its transformation from an electronics maker into an entertainment giant spanning games, music and movies.
Sony also brought “The Last Of Us” franchise, which depicts characters struggling to survive in a post-apocalyptic United States, to PC as part of its push to diversify beyond consoles.
“Our PC business is already a huge contributor to profit,” said Ryan.
Sony expects PC revenue to reach $450 million in the current fiscal year, compared to $80 million two years ago.
In consoles, supply chain crises have receded with the potential for PlayStation 5 sales to catch up and then overtake PlayStation 4 during the current fiscal year. Meanwhile, investors await more details on the expansion into the streaming service and mobile games.
While Sony’s traditional strength has been in single-player games, more than half of PlayStation’s investment this year will be in games for the live service, which provide continuously updated play.
Innovation in cloud technology and artificial intelligence is widely expected to transform the gaming industry, with Sony playing a role in keeping the gate going.
“We have some pretty interesting and bold plans to accelerate our initiatives in the cloud space that will unfold over the coming months,” Ryan said, without providing details.