Sony Announces Revision of Consolidated Forecast for the Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2012

- Sony has revised its consolidated results forecast for the fiscal year ended March 31,
2012 from that announced on February 2, 2012.
• Sony expects to record an aggregate additional charge of approximately 300 billion yen in tax expense
in the fourth quarter of the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012, primarily due to the establishment of
valuation allowances against certain deferred tax assets, predominantly in the U.S.
• This additional tax expense is a non-cash charge and does not have any impact on Sony’s consolidated
operating income (loss) or cash flow.
• Due to the recording of this additional tax expense, net loss attributable to Sony Corporation’s
stockholders is expected to be significantly greater than the February forecast.  As of April 10, 2012,
no revisions have been made to consolidated sales, operating income (loss) and net income (loss)
before taxes in the forecast announced on February 2, 2012.
The current forecast has been prepared based on the information available at the time of the issuance of this
release.  Actual results may differ from this forecast due to a variety of factors.  See “Cautionary Statement” at
the end of this press release for further details.
For the fiscal year starting April 1, 2012, with assumed foreign currency exchange rates of approximately 80
yen against the U.S. dollar and approximately 105 yen against the euro, Sony is currently forecasting that it
will return to positive operating results and that its consolidated income for the fiscal year ending March 31,
2013 will be approximately 180 billion yen.  The details of the actual consolidated results for the fiscal year
ended March 31, 2012 and the consolidated results forecast for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2013 are
scheduled to be announced on May 10, 2012.
Consolidated Results Forecast for the Fiscal Year ended March 31, 2012
(Billions of yen)
April
Forecast
Change from
February
Forecast
February
Forecast
Change from
March 31, 2011
Actual Results
March 31, 2011
Actual Results
Sales and operating revenue ¥6,400 -% ¥6,400 -10.9% ¥7,181.3
Operating income (loss) (95) - (95) - 199.8
Income (loss) before income taxes (115) - (115) - 205.0
Net income (loss) attributable to
Sony Corporation’s stockholders
(520) - (220) - (259.6)
The following are the primary factors affecting the change in the consolidated results forecast for net loss
attributable to Sony Corporation’s stockholders:
• Based on U.S. GAAP under which Sony reports its consolidated results, cumulative losses in recent
fiscal years are considered significant negative evidence regarding the realizability of deferred tax
assets.  Sony evaluates its deferred tax assets on a tax jurisdiction basis to determine if a valuation
allowance is required.  In the U.S., Sony’s holding company and its subsidiaries file a consolidated
News & Information
Sony Announces Revision of Consolidated Forecast
for the Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2012
1-7-1 Konan, Minato-ku
Tokyo 108-0075 Japan2
federal tax return. This consolidated tax filing group is expected to have incurred cumulative losses in
recent fiscal years including the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012.  After comparing this significant
negative evidence, to objectively verifiable positive factors, Sony expects to record a non-cash charge
to establish a valuation allowance against certain deferred tax assets held by the consolidated tax
filing group in the U.S.  This expected charge represents approximately 80 percent of the aggregate
additional tax expense.
• In addition to the above-mentioned valuation allowance in the U.S., Sony conducted a review of its
estimated tax expense resulting from recent bilateral governmental negotiations pertaining to transfer
pricing for certain intercompany transactions.  As a result, due to the increased possibility that profits
will be reallocated between Japan and certain of Sony’s overseas subsidiaries, Sony expects to record
additional tax expense.  This additional tax expense includes establishment of additional valuation
allowances against certain deferred tax assets in two jurisdictions other than the U.S.
• The valuation allowances and additional tax expense resulting from recent bilateral governmental
negotiations are non-cash charges, which do not have any impact on Sony’s consolidated operating
income (loss) or cash flow, nor do they preclude Sony from using these loss carryforwards or other
deferred tax assets in the future.