Sony takes out ¥80 billion loan as PS3 production ramps up

[wraggster]

Sony Corp. has taken out an 80 billion Yen (545 million Euro) three-year floating-rate bank loan - marking the first time the company has borrowed funds in ten years.

According to Bloomberg.com, more than 20 Japanese lenders will contribute to the loan, which will be used to "diversify funding sources."

The report suggests that Sony has "tapped the country's expanding syndicated loan market as it offered a cheaper source of cash at a time when investors in corporate debt are demanding higher yields before an expected rise in Japanese interest rates this year."

Sony spokesperson Shinichi Tobe told Bloomberg that the loan offers more flexibility than bonds, and that the company had ended up borrowing more funds than initially planned.

Fellow spokesperson Koji Kurata added that the funds will be used "for general purposes", according to Bloomberg. Sony intends to invest 460 billion Yen (3.13 billion Euro) in semi-conductor manufacturing and 100 billion Yen (68 million Euro) in an initiative to develop liquid-crystal displays with Samsung.

Sony is also facing costs associated with the manufacture of the PlayStation 3 and the launch of the new Blu-Ray disc format - both of which are due to roll out this year. Last year the company embarked on a three-year cost-cutting exercise that will see the loss of 10,000 jobs. ...

[acn010]

holy shit..........
thats a lot of money O.o'

[LAMPRO]

is their liquid cash more than 5 times their debt? what a move..

[Accordion]

i smell....

bankruptcy

[SSaxdude]

I think they're going a bit too far.

[Napalm-Death]

I don't want to think this, but it seems like the end is near..

[borgamix123]

i am portuguese and if the new ps3 site is correct with this money they will build 1092184 ps3s if they have the 20gb hard drive

[gamer121]

i think i finally get sony's plan...

see all this money sony is spending and the integration of new technology(such as Blue Ray)

there plan is to skip the next generation...so when there is a Xbox 3 they will still have the PS3 going as there main money maker

[stotheamuel]

its not too much.. its ony 1 million ps3s :-X

or 12 million games... but it does make me a bit uneasy... first time in 10 years

[BrooksyX]

basically the ps3 is going to make or break sony.

So i sure hope sony has their own halo type game up their sleeve because i personally plan on buying a xbox360 just for halo 3 and gears of war.

[stotheamuel]

same here that's why i got an xbox 360 and most likely wont get a ps3.. atleast not for a while.. i really do think ps3 will win though...

[whitefeather]

sony does have a "halo" type game its called Metal Gear

[Accordion]

eh

you cant compare an average shooter, with the ultimate stealth game ever

[acn010]

sony does have a "halo" type game its called Metal Gear
sony is trying to get permission to microsoft for halo devolpement on the ps3,
i dont think micro wants to grand that permission although, theyll get profit out of it

[tsurumaru]

eh

you cant compare an average shooter, with the ultimate stealth game ever

You can't compare what is essentially an interactive movie with a little bit of gameplay thrown in to one of the best console first person shooters of all time. :p

Apples and Oranges.......

[BrooksyX]

sony does have a "halo" type game its called Metal Gear

Yeah but you can buy a metal gear game on more than 1 platform and i wouldnt be suprised if konami released it for the 360 in a year or two.

[Shadowblind]

the only bad thing about this? If Sony goes into dept, what will happen to kingdom hearts, final fantasy, and worst of all, the great PSP?

[Accordion]

You can't compare what is essentially an interactive movie with a little bit of gameplay thrown in to one of the best console first person shooters of all time. :p

Apples and Oranges.......


halo is crap (yes i have played 1 and 2)
it ripped off red faction...
...
... badly

[muffinman]

yeah i played red faction through the other day (took about 3-4 days maybe. damn pc muck ups.) and i saw that halo's ideas did seem slightly "borrowed"

[stotheamuel]

sony is trying to get permission to microsoft for halo devolpement on the ps3,
i dont think micro wants to grand that permission although, theyll get profit out of it


Hmm Sony already lost Halo once... poor Sony.. Xbox 360 wouldn't even be here today,(I think) if Sony had gotten halo

"A sci-fi shooter that takes place on a mysterious alien ring world, Halo: Combat Evolved is an action-packed experience that allows players to battle their enemies on foot and in vehicles with alien and human weaponry. The production of Halo has a long and tumultuous history. The title was originally designed as a breakthrough game for Apple's Mac systems, and console versions of the game also became a high-priority project for the development team when it signed with Take-Two. As all PlayStation 2 owners are aware, however, production on Halo was shifted immediately to an Xbox version in 2000 when Take-Two Interactive sold its 20% share of developer Bungie to Microsoft. Thereby solidifying Halo's position as an Xbox and PC exclusive (with a Mac port much, much later on) forever."

[thesandman]

Well, I hope it does make them. The PS1 and PS2 were both amazing systems and I like sony as a company, never having any problems with anything from them, except the cd drive on my ps2 burnt out, but who can blame them for something that happens 3 years after the system is out? Then again, I liked Sega's consoles too. . . heh. Well either way I'm getting a PS3 and a Wii

[Napalm-Death]

I won't be able to buy a PS3 this year because I'll be buying imports for the rest of the year. But I hope that the loan helps the PS3 and Sony succeed.

[tsurumaru]

halo is crap (yes i have played 1 and 2)
it ripped off red faction...
...
... badly

Personal opinion mate, I guess the majority of the 14 million people who have bought a game from the franchise would disagree with you.

Just like Red Faction ripped off elements of every FPS that came before it?

Sigh, internet arguements LOL ;)

Wherever you stand on the MS/Sony/Nintendo next gen launch, you have to admit even if you don't particularly like Sony as a company they have done a lot for the scene and without them a lot of classic games would never have seen the light of day. (OK a lot of dire games would never have been made either but I guess that is the price you pay for excellence).