Sony Ericsson has released its financials for its fourth quarter ending 31 December, as well as its full year numbers.

Sales for FY2011 were €5.2 billion (around $6.8 billion), down 17 percent year-on-year.

Due to what it called competition, price erosion and restructuring charges of €93 million (around $120 million), the company made an overall loss of €247 million (around $320 million).

This compared to profit of €90 (around $120 million) in 2010.

It ended the year with €442 million ($575 million) in cash, and total borrowings of €742 million ($960 million)

Xperia hope

During 2011, Sony Ericsson shipped 34.4 million devices, down 20 percent on the 43.1 million shipped in 2010.

However, the company pointed out that this was partly due to its transition from feature to smartphones.

During 2011, shipments of its key Xperia Android-based devices were up 65 percent, which raised the average selling price of a shipped device from €146 ($189) in 2010 to €152 ($197) in 2011.

To-date, the company has shipped 28 million Xperia smartphones.

Sony Ericsson estimates its share of the global Android-based smartphone market was 10 percent in terms of volume and 7 percent in value during Q4 and 10 percent in volume and 10 percent in value for the full year.

Bad quarter

Q4 sales for the three months ending 31 December 2011, were €1.3 billion (around $1.7 billion), down 16 percent.

During that period, Sony Ericsson made a net loss of €207 million (around $270 million). Unit shipments during Q4 were down 20 percent to 9 million.

Average price during Q4 was €143 ($185) compared to €166 ($215) in Q4 2011.

All figures are provided according to Swedish generally accepted accounting principles.

Challenged

"Our fourth quarter results reflected intense competition, unfavorable macroeconomic conditions and the effects of a natural disaster in Thailand this quarter," commented president and CEO Bert Nordberg.

"We are aligning our business to drive profitability and to meet customer needs. In spite of these challenges, throughout 2011 we've shifted our business from feature phones to smartphones, and our Android-based smartphone sales in the quarter increased by 65 percent year-on-year.

"The Xperia portfolio, including the recently announced Xperia NXT series, will serve as a cornerstone of our smartphone lineup in 2012."

Sony Ericsson will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony in late January or February 2012, subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.

[source: Sony Ericsson]