Sony Ericsson have had a tough run up to the end of the year in 2011, claiming that market competition and the disaster in Thailand have damaged their earnings.
In the three months ending December 31st Sony Ericsson sales were €1.29 billion, down from €1.53 billion in the same quarter year previous. They are claiming a loss of €207 million, from an €8 million profit last time.
Bert Nordberg said in a statement “Our fourth-quarter results reflected intense competition, unfavorable macroeconomic conditions and the effects of a natural disaster in Thailand this quarter.”
This loss has damaged the parent company Ericsson, who hold 50% of Sony Ericsson. They said today that these results will reduce their fourth quarter results by 1.1 billion Swedish Krona.
Sony are paying Ericsson €1.05 billion for their 50% stake in the company and this transaction is going to take place in the coming weeks. While the floods in Thailand will have caused some of the problems, Sony Ericsson have shipped 9 million handsets in Q4 which was a 20% decrease year on year.
The company issued a statement which read “The year-on-year and sequential declines reflect a significantly lower number of feature phones shipped, partially offset by an increase in smartphone shipments.”