Sony Lifts Profit Forecast by 8%, Citing Lower Tariff Impact and Strong Anime Performance

Sony has raised its operating profit forecast for the fiscal year ending March 2026 by 8% to 1.43 trillion yen ($9.5 billion), crediting a lower-than-expected impact from U.S. tariffs and strong results from its entertainment and semiconductor divisions.

In the July–September quarter, operating profit climbed 10% to 429 billion yen, driven by robust sales in its music and chip businesses. Sony highlighted the success of its animated hit “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – Infinity Castle” as a key contributor to the performance.

Once best known for electronics, Sony has steadily evolved into an entertainment powerhouse, with anime now one of its most profitable sectors.

However, its gaming division reported weaker results after recording impairment losses tied to “Destiny 2,” developed by its studio Bungie. Chief Financial Officer Lin Tao said user engagement had fallen short of expectations following the acquisition.

Sony sold 3.9 million PlayStation 5 consoles during the quarter, slightly above last year’s figure, and aims to grow its player base during the holiday season while maintaining profitability. The company’s recently launched game “Ghost of Yotei” sold 3.3 million copies, receiving strong critical and commercial response.

Meanwhile, the global gaming landscape continues to evolve: Take-Two Interactive has once again delayed “Grand Theft Auto VI” to November next year, while Nintendo has raised its forecast for the Switch 2 to 19 million units amid high demand.

Sony’s chip business also saw gains from increased sales of large image sensors used in smartphones, with some clients reportedly accelerating purchases ahead of tariffs. The company now expects a 50 billion yen tariff impact, lower than its earlier estimate of 70 billion yen.

To reward shareholders, Sony announced a share buyback program of up to 35 million shares worth around 100 billion yen. Following the news, Sony’s stock rose 5.5%.

Three Smart Tricks to Stay on Top of Schedules and Meetings (and How to Apply Them in Google Calendar and Outlook)

If you rely on Google Calendar or Outlook to organize your daily schedule, a few simple adjustments can dramatically improve how you manage time and meetings. Experts say there are three key tricks that can make your calendar clearer, save time, and help you feel more in control: using color codes, creating templates for recurring events, and integrating your calendar with task apps.

1. Use colors to spot events at a glance
Color-coding is a quick and effective way to categorize and prioritize your schedule. For example, blue can mark work meetings, yellow medical appointments, and green family events.

In Google Calendar, the best way to do this is by creating a separate calendar for each category, each with its own color. Just click “Add another calendar” from the sidebar, assign a name and color, and all will appear together on your main view.

In Outlook, the process uses categories instead. Right-click an event, select “Categorize”, and choose or create a color. Outlook even lets you assign multiple categories to one event—useful for meetings that overlap between projects or urgency levels.

2. Save time with templates and recurring events
If you often schedule similar meetings or reminders, creating templates and recurring events can make life much easier.

While Google Calendar doesn’t have formal templates, you can duplicate an event with all its details to future dates. When adding a new event, click “Does not repeat” to open frequency options (daily, weekly, monthly, or custom). You can even define advanced patterns like “every two Thursdays” or “the last day of the month.”

Outlook offers more robust recurrence controls. When creating an event, click “Recurrence” to set detailed repetition patterns and duration. It also lets you save events as .oft templates, ideal for standard meetings or follow-up reminders.

3. Integrate with task management apps
Integrating calendars with task apps creates a unified workflow. Google Calendar syncs seamlessly with Google Tasks—you can access it directly from the sidebar, set dates and times, and drag tasks onto your schedule.

Outlook pairs with Microsoft To Do, though they work more independently. Emails flagged in Outlook appear in To Do automatically, while tasks with due dates in To Do show up on your Outlook calendar.

Bonus tips
Both tools offer extra features to refine your schedule: create “focus time” or “break” events, enable time zone support for international teams, use keyboard shortcuts (press “C” in Google Calendar to create an event), and personalize notifications with varying alert times depending on event importance.

How to Use Spotify, YouTube Music, and Apple Music to Discover New Music

Just a decade ago, discovering new music meant waiting for a friend’s recommendation, listening to the radio, or following TV and magazine charts. Today, that task is handled by streaming platforms’ algorithms, which analyze your listening habits to predict your tastes and recommend songs you’re likely to love. Spotify, YouTube Music, Apple Music, and TIDAL all have specific features designed to help users find new sounds effortlessly.

Spotify, with nearly 700 million monthly users, offers personalized tools such as Discover Weekly—a playlist of 30 new tracks updated every Monday—and Release Radar, which features fresh releases from artists you follow, updated every Friday. The Daily Mix playlists blend familiar songs with new discoveries grouped by genre or mood. Its newest feature, AI DJ, uses artificial intelligence to act as a personal music guide that mixes old favorites with new tunes and adds voice commentary between tracks.

TIDAL, a favorite among audiophiles, offers My Mix, My Daily Discovery, and My New Arrivals—playlists that combine your favorite artists with new ones, all in high-fidelity sound. The platform also features TIDAL Rising, which promotes emerging musicians worldwide, and an Autoplay function that keeps the music going with similar songs once your playlist or album ends.

YouTube Music stands out for its integration with YouTube, mixing official tracks with live performances, remixes, and covers. You can launch a radio station based on any artist or song, customize how much variety you want, and even switch to Discovery Mode to prioritize tracks you haven’t heard before. Its new Daily Discovery feature refreshes recommendations every day, while upcoming AI tools promise even more tailored experiences.

Meanwhile, Apple Music helps listeners discover fresh music through its Explore tab, which offers curated playlists by genre, mood, and global trends. Its Discovery Station, found under “Stations for You,” plays songs not in your library but similar to your taste, while Your Station mixes familiar favorites with new suggestions.

No matter which platform you use, the best way to improve recommendations is to like songs you enjoy, follow artists, and listen regularly—helping algorithms fine-tune your musical journey.