PSP shipments down, but software gaining momentum

While we were so hyped up about the new 2.80 firmware, some of the smaller news stories fell through the cracks. For example, Sony revealed their quarterly results, and revealed that yes, they finally made money. But, that money certainly didn't come from the games division. Rather, sales of digital cameras, cell phones, and the theatrical release of The DaVinci Code seemed to pour the cash into Sony's pockets. The games division has seen a 29.1 percent drop in sales and operating revenue for this quarter, and the operating losses have increased this quarter to $232.2 million.

Sales for PlayStation 2's notably aged hardware and software predictably went down. Unfortunately, it appears that demand for PSP hardware has dropped worldwide, resulting in approximately 3% less shipments this quarter (note that shipments and sales are two different figures). However, shipments for software have nearly doubled, reaching 9.1 million (an increase of 4.2 million).

While hardware may have seen a small dip, that software figure shows a still-impressive run for the PSP. It appears that the games division will be making most of its money from the PSP for now, as analysts predict that PS3 manufacturing costs will cost the company $2 billion within a year.

[Via Gamasutra]