In case of most healthy companies like Apple Inc. or Samsung, its only a cause for celebration when their earnings improve from one quarter to another. Now, Sony is looking to join this club, all be it in a completely different manor. After having recorded enormous losses for four years, including  a record $5.7 billion loss last year, the PlayStation makers and once television pioneer was able to record a $312 million Q1 loss for 2012 and followed up with a Q2 loss of $198.

While this would be a sign of alarm for any of the big players like the two mentioned above, this marks a welcomed change for Sony who seems be lowering its losses with each quarter. This of course comes in the wake of a 10,000 job cut that has begun to take effect and help reduce the red ink. Sony has even reported a drop in the companies restructuring costs over the last year which has seen the company sell off its chemical business, relocate its mobile HQ from Europe to Japan and close one of its lens plants.

A bright spot for Sony was their mobile division which heavily revolves around their smartphone and tablet strategy. Thanks to increased sales of their Xperia smartphones, Sony was able to raise their revenue to  $3.9 billion, more than double of their previous quarter. Despite that, the division still reported a $296 million loss, compared to $356 million loss in Q1. Other healthy divisions for Sony includes their gaming, music and picture divisions which all stayed in the black. Notably, their imaging sensors division reported a $382 million profit, thanks to many DSLR utilizing Sony’s sensors, including Nikon and the iPhone 4S.

Sony’s television division has famously reported a loss for 8 years and this quarter was no different. However, much like the company, big improvements have been made on the Bravia line which includes a more defined and simplified line. This led to a $203 million loss which is far better than the 2011 Q2 $526 million loss. Which acquisitions of Gaikai and a big financial backing of Olympus, Sony’s revenue for the fiscal year ending in March 2013 is expected to drop by $2 billion, down to $83 billion.

Discuss:

Is Sony finally at a turning point?

[Via Sony]