MUMBAI: Sony Corporation announced its consolidated financial results for the fiscal year ended 31 March 2014 (1 April, 2013 to 31 March, 2014). The music segment witnessed increase in sales by 13.9 per cent year-on-year (essentially flat on a constant currency basis) to 503.3 billion yen (4,886 million U.S. dollars) primarily due to the depreciation of the yen against the U.S. dollar.

However, the operating income increased 13 billion yen year-on-year to 50.2 billion yen (487 million U.S. dollars). Sony Corporation attributed the increase in operating income to an improvement in equity in net income (loss) from affiliated companies, mainly EMI Music Publishing, the favourable impact of the depreciation of the yen against the U.S. dollar and a decrease in restructuring charges.

One Direction's 'Midnight Memories', Daft Punk's 'Random Access Memories', Beyoncé's 'BEYONCÉ' and Miley Cyrus' 'Bangerz', were the bestselling titles in the said fiscal year, as stated in the financials.

The forecast for Music sales and operating revenue for 31 March 2015 is 500 billion yen which is lower by 0.7 per cent compared to this year's result. However, forecast for operating income show a difference of 2.2 billion, which is a drop of 4.4 percent in the next fiscal. Operating income is forecasted to be 48 billion yen. The fall in operating income is expected to slightly decrease primarily due to an increase in restructuring charges as well as the negative impact from the contraction of the recorded music market in Japan; however, sales are expected to be essentially flat year-on-year. In 2013, operating income was 37.2 billion yen.

Sony Corp's music segment has expanded into the following three categories: Recorded Music, Music Publishing and Visual Media and Platform. Recorded Music includes the distribution of physical and digital recorded music and revenue derived from artists' live performances; Music Publishing includes the management and licensing of the words and music of songs; Visual Media and Platform includes various service offerings for music and visual products and the production and distribution of animation titles.

Sales to customers for Recorded Music is 347,684 billion yen that is a rise of 13 per cent; for Music Publishing is 66,869 billion yen which is increase of 26.7 percent; and for Visual Media and Platform is 77,505 billion yen which is increase of 8.9 percent, all compared to last fiscal year.

(The results states "the results presented in Music include the yen-translated
results of Sony Music Entertainment ("SME"), a U.S.-based operation which aggregates the results of its worldwide subsidiaries on a U.S. dollar basis, the results of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc., a Japan-based music company which aggregates its results in yen, and the yen-translated consolidated results of Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC ("Sony/ATV"), a 50 per cent owned U.S.-based joint venture in the music publishing business which aggregates the results of its worldwide subsidiaries on a U.S. dollar basis.")