Sony’s camera sales are steadily increasing, according to the company’s latest financial report. But the positive numbers for the 2024 fiscal years also come with some insight in what’s next for the tech giant, including potential tariff price hikes and plans to expand sensor sizes for smartphones.
Among the company’s financial data, Sony is expecting the Trump Administration’s trade war to impact the business by around 100 billion yen, based on current tariff rates. That’s nearly $650 million in USD, or about £513 million.
During a question-and-answer session in Sony’s earnings call, Chief Financial Officer Lin Tao clarified that those numbers aren’t a simple tariff percentage but include market trends and price adjustments. “In terms of the tariff,” she said, “we are not just simply calculating the simple tariff to come up with 100 billion yen, but thinking about the currently available information and also looking at the market trend. We may pass on to the price and also shipment allocations.”
Passing on the price would mean a rise in prices on products imported into the US, but there are multiple strategies for passing on the cost of tariffs. Some brands have increased list prices outright, while others are rumored to be considering decreasing sales and promotions.
Sony’s business model covers multiple categories from smartphones and TVs to cameras, but Tao included cameras in the categories where the company is anticipating that 100 billion yen tariff impact. Along with the camera and imaging sensors business segment, the estimate also stems from Sony’s games and network services, and entertainment-technology segments.
Tao specifically mentions tariffs on hardware, so the recent Trump social media post calling for tariffs on films wasn’t factored into Sony’s movie-making estimates.
For Sony’s imaging and sensors segment, the company reported a 12 percent increase in sales for the last fiscal year, attributing that bump in part to an increase in sensor sales that are destined for mobile devices. That’s higher than Sony’s overall reported sales, which increased by seven percent.
One statement on the financial presentation materials hints that Sony is planning on launching a wider variety of sensor sizes for its equipment meant for smartphones: “In FY25, we expect to achieve growth in sales and profit primarily due to an expansion of mobile sensor sizes despite an expected appreciation of the yen.”
A statement from Sony in a related press release sheds more light on just what that may entail. “In the mobile image sensor business, Sony aims to achieve further growth by capitalizing on the trend toward larger sensor sizes and offering high value-added, differentiated sensors that meet customer expectations by combining a new generation process with sensors such as the two-layer transistor pixel ‘TRISTA’.”
Sensor size is one of the largest indicators of image quality – moving towards larger sensors will likely drive increased quality from smartphone cameras. The two-layer structure that Sony references is the brand’s stacked sensor technology, which helps increase dynamic range and reduce noise.
For the 2025 fiscal year, Sony expects the imaging segment to continue steady growth, estimating a nine percent increase in sales.
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