The Middle East and Africa region is "a strategically important growth market" for Sony Mobile, it says.
This as the mobile group reported profit of 10.2 billion yen (R1.24 billion) this year, according to its latest financial results.
Continuing its growth trend, Sony Mobile expects to increase annual smartphone unit sales by 1.9 million year-on-year, mainly in the Middle East and Europe, to 16.5 million units. Sales revenue is expected to increase 8% year-on-year to yen820 billion (R100 billion), which will be a record operating income for Sony Mobile, the group says in a statement.
"Advances included in our new smartphones have positioned us as a technological leader in the global market and our innovation gives us confidence for the future," according to Jason Smith, VP for the Middle East and Africa at Sony Mobile Communications.
Sony Corporation, of which Sony Mobile is a division, is targeting its highest annual operating profit in two decades, thanks to continued dominance in gaming and strong growth in phone-camera chips. Operating profit is on track to reach yen500 billion (R60.8 billion) for the fiscal year through March 2018, which will be more than that posted in any year since 1998, according to the group.
Sony Mobile says it has put emphasis on higher value-added smartphone models to achieve profitability.
"Operating results improved significantly, mainly due to a reduction in operating costs and benefit from restructuring initiatives. Further improvement in profitability resulted from a concentration on fewer geographic areas and a reduction in restructuring charges," it says.
Hideyuki Furumi, executive VP of global sales and marketing, says Sony Mobile is committed to its vision of offering personalised and intelligent products to the market.
"We are developing artificial intelligence apps on our phones. We have continued to evolve and transform our smartphone portfolio, with an unwavering focus on delivering the most advanced technology in elegantly designed products. We expect to see a good next year financially, with a range of new products and increasing smartphone unit sales," adds Furumi.
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