Sony Group Corp

Today I will explain the content shown here. Sales of continuing operations in FY25 Q3 increased 1% compared to the same quarter of the previous fiscal year to 3,713.7 billion yen, and operating income increased 22% to 515 billion yen. Both were record highs for the third quarter. Net income increased 11% to 377.3 billion yen, The financial results by segment are shown here. We upwardly revised our 4-year sales forecast from the previous forecast 3% to 12,300,000,000 yen, operating income 8% to 1,540,000,000 yen, and net income 8% to 1,130,000,000 yen. we increased our forecast for operating cash flow 9% to 1,630,000,000 Yen. The forecast for each segment is shown here. Now I will turn to an overview of each business. First is the GNNS segment. FY25 Q3 sales decreased 4% year-on-year, primarily due to lower hardware unit sales. Operating income increased 19% year-on-year primarily due to the positive impact of foreign exchange rates and the impact of increased sales and network services and first-party software, setting a record for the third quarter in this segment. We upwardly revised our FY25 sales forecast 4% from the previous forecast to ¥4,630,000,000 and our operating income forecast 2% to ¥510,000,000. User engagement trended well during the quarter, with the number of monthly active users across all of the PlayStation in December increasing 2% compared to the last December to a record high of 132 million accounts, and total playtime for the quarter increased 0.4% year-on-year. Although conditions in the console hardware market during year-end selling season were more challenging than expected, we were able to steadily expand our PS5 install base in line with our original plan and exceeded 92 million units on a cumulative selling basis. While PS5 hardware unit sales have decreased moderately in latter half of the console cycle, software revenue from the PlayStation Store reached a record high during the quarter, primarily driven by the contribution of major third-party franchise titles and new hit releases. PlayStation Plus significantly contributed to the results of the quarter as the shift to higher tiers of the service continued. As for securing a supply of memory, we are already in a position to secure the minimum quantity necessary to manage the year-end selling season of next fiscal year. Going forward, we intend to further negotiate with various suppliers to secure enough supply to meet the demand of our customers. Given the stage of our console cycle, our hardware sales strategy can be adjusted flexibly, and we intend to minimize the impact of the increased memory cost on this segment going forward by prioritizing monetization of the install base to date and striving to further expand our software and network service revenue. In the studio business, Ghost of Yotei, a tentpole title we released in October, exceeded the sales of the previous title in the same period of time and significantly contributed to the financial results of the quarter. Our established live service titles like Helldivers 2 and MLB The Show also contributed stable recurring revenue. We expect that Marathon, which is scheduled to be released on March 5th, will be enjoyed by many users thanks to Bungie having strengthened the gaming experience. Next fiscal year, we plan to release new titles such as Seros and Marvel's Wolverine, and we intend to enhance our effort to increase the revenue of our studio business. Next is music segment. primarily due to an increase in live events, sales, and streaming revenue in recorded music. FY25 Q3 sales increased 13% year-on-year. Operating income increased 9%, reaching a record high for the third quarter, excluding one-time items. On a US dollar basis, streaming revenues for the quarter increased 5% year-on-year in recorded music and 13% in music publishing. We upwardly revised our sales forecast 4% from the previous forecast to 2 trillion 50 billion yen and our operating income forecast 16% to 445 billion yen. We incorporated a re-measurement gain of approximately 45 billion yen from the acquisition of an additional equity interest in Peanuts Holdings in the forecast for operating income. SMG artists delivered hits during the quarter, and the sales of SMG continued to increase by double digits year on year, like in the previous quarter. Rosalia's new album, Lux, reached number one globally in its first week on Spotify, and Peso Pluma's collaborative album, Disnasia, is one of the most streamed on Spotify. These global successes and global hit artists are the result of SMG's strategic focus on discovering local artists and supporting their musical endeavors. Many SMG artists and songwriters received accolades and nominations at the 68th Annual Grammy Awards held in the U.S. earlier this month. with Bad Bunny winning Album of the Year for Debi dirás más fotos, as Beyonce did last year. In visual media and platform, the theatrical release of Demon Slayer, Kimetsu no Yaiba, the movie Infinity's Castle, which has exceeded 100 billion yen in global box office revenue, continued to contribute, and the mobile game Fate Grand Order, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in July 2025, contributed more to our results than expected. Next is the picture segment. FY25 Q3 sales decreased 11% year-on-year and operating income decreased 9%, primarily because the same quarter of the previous fiscal year benefited from the contribution of the blockbuster film Venom the Last Dance and licensing revenue from other theatrical released films. Our forecast is unchanged from the previous forecast. In January, SPE signed a new payone licensing agreement with Netflix. Through this agreement, Netflix will stream on a global basis, SP's future theatrical films and the pay one window, the initial window within long TV licensing period that follows the theatrical and home entertainment periods. This agreement is an industry first global licensing deal that will enable SPE to secure an even more stable revenue base during the period of the deal. Furthermore, the signing of this agreement is proof of SPE's excellent production capabilities and the power of its appealing IP. As an independent production company, we will continue to pursue other licensing opportunities with a wide range of distribution partners beyond the payone window. Now, I will explain our additional investment in Peanuts IP, which we announced in December as an initiative that spans our music and picture segments. Through this transaction, Sony will gain ownership of 80% of Peanuts worldwide, which owns the rights and manages the business of Peanuts IP, one of the world's leading evergreen IPs. While closely collaborating with the family of Mr. Schwartz, the creator of Peanuts, which owns the remaining 20%, we aim to further grow the scale of the business and further increase the value of the brand over the long term by leveraging the strengths of the Sony Group. Specifically, we aim to enhance SMEJ's music, video, and event business by leveraging Peanuts IP and collaborating with SMEJ's artists and content. Furthermore, by utilizing SPE's production capabilities and distribution network, we aim to make Peanuts IP more accessible to a wider audience and share its charm with people all over the world. The transaction is expected to close during the current fiscal year, subject to certain closing conditions, including regulatory approvals by the relevant authorities. Next is the ET&S segment. FY25 Q3 sales decreased 7% year-on-year and operating income decreased 23% year-on-year, primarily due to the impact of lower sales partially offset by an improvement in operating expenses. Our full-year forecast remains unchanged from the previous forecast. Despite a continued decline in sales in China due to reduced government subsidies and weakness in the overall market during the shopping season for Singles Day, demand in the global interchangeable lens camera market during the quarter remains strong year on year, mainly in Asia. The Alpha 7 Mark V, released in December, has been selling well as a new product for the volume zone of the full-frame mirrorless single-lens reflex camera market, and we expect it will continue to contribute to sales in the fourth quarter ending March 31, 2026. Regarding the impact of the situation in the market for memory, we are almost in a position to secure the quantity we need through the year-end selling season for next fiscal year. We will continue to monitor the situation while working to minimize the impact on profitability. On January 20th, Sony signed an MOU with TCL aimed at forming a strategic partnership in the home entertainment field. In the MOU, both companies agreed that a joint venture between the two companies would operate Sony's home entertainment business, and we are negotiating the details with the intention of executing a definitive agreement by the end of March. By leveraging Sony's high-definition and high-fidelity technology, brand strength, and operational management capability while utilizing TCL's advanced display technology, cost competitiveness, and vertical supply chain strength, the joint venture aims to further strengthen the competitiveness of this business and realize sustainable growth. Last is the INSS segment. FY25 Q3 sales increased 21% year-on-year and operating income increased 35%, both of which were record highs for the third quarter for the segment. These are primarily due to an increase in sales volume and unit prices of mobile image sensors. We upwardly revised our sales forecast 5% to 2 trillion 80 billion yen and operating income forecast 13% to 350 billion yen, primarily driven by the increase in sales volume and sensors for mobile devices and the impact of foreign exchange rates. Mobile image sensor sales during the quarter increased significantly year on year due to a gradual recovery in the smartphone market, strong shipments for new products from our major customer, and a higher die-sized sensor. Because recent orders are stable, we believe that the supply chain concerns we mentioned at the previous earnings announcement have receded. and we have upwardly revised our annual shipment forecast for mobile image sensors. Going forward, we think that the impact of the situation in the memory market will become more apparent, mainly in the form of fewer smartphone made, primarily for the low-end market. Since Sony's image sensors are primarily for the high-end market, at this time, we think the impact will be relatively small. We will continue to monitor the situation while keeping in close contact with our customers. In addition, we are continuing to take action to address low margin business as we mentioned at the previous earning announcement. As a part of that, we have incorporated additional expenses for resource and assets optimization of the relevant business in our forecast for FY25 Q4. We will continue to focus on improving our business portfolio and raise our profitability. To summarize, the GNNS Music and INSS segment achieved record high operating income and are driving the profit growth of the Sony Group overall this quarter. We believe that the structural profitability of the Group is further improving. Given the continued uncertain business environment, we plan to carefully manage our business and consistently produce results as we approach the fiscal year end. We intend to take actions this fiscal year to get off to a good start next fiscal year. As for shareholders' returns, today we increased the maximum of our share repurchase facility established in November 2025 from 100 billion yen to 150 billion yen. This concludes my remarks.

That was Ms. Dao. Following the presentation, we will have a Q&A session for the media at 4.20 PM and for investors and analysis at 4.45 PM. Each Q&A session is scheduled to last approximately 20 minutes. For those who have pre-registered to ask questions, please click the Join Webinar link and stay online while you wait. Regarding the procedure and precautions for asking questions, please refer to the invitation sent to you in advance. Please wait. The session will resume shortly.

Thank you for waiting. We'd like to begin the media Q&A session shortly. Please wait a few moments. Thank you for meeting. We'll start the Q&A session. First, we'll introduce you to today's speakers. Chief Financial Officer, CFO, Corporate Executive Officer, Lin Tao. Senior Vice President in Charge of Accounting, Hirotoshi Korenaga. Senior Vice President in Charge of Corporate Planning and Control, Naoya Horii. We'll take questions from the media. Keep questions up to two per person. Please click Raise Hand button on the WebEx screen if you have questions. The first question is from Toyo Keizai, Umegaki-san. Yes, I'm Umegaki from Toyo Keizai. Can you hear me? Yes. All right. So I'd like to ask two questions. The first question is about Marathon. And it's going to be released on March 5, I understand. And it has been delayed. And what kind of considerations did you have until you decided to have this? And in the past, there were several cases that has been stop short, but what kind of learning did you have? And for the live service game, and what is the strategic significance of having that? And this kind of a platform, I think, but to have quite a number of platforms, what is the significance for the group to have such platforms? Yes, thank you for your question. And as for the marathon, well, it has the user tests and then from the users had feedback for marathon and in the game. So what was a good point and not good point and such kind of a feedback we had taken into consideration and we had modified. And this time around, so after the modification, we are very confident to release it on March 5th. And live service, the games are significant, you ask. But here, what is most important for us is that the live service is a recurring revenue. And recurring revenue means that the hit driven. And if it comes a hit, then for a year, it can bring revenue. If not become a hit, then no revenue. So it's such a volatility high studio, but it's going to give us a constant amount of revenue every year. So that's the merit of having a hit live service. But, well, it's not that we want to have too many of them. It's not what we want to have. So the ideal is that so-called AAA and live service game would become integrated into portfolio management style. That's it for me. And the second question is about your stock price. And you had announced your earnings results, and it was 3 yen. but it's almost flat, so that the market valuation is quite severe, I think, and the stock performance is not good because the memory had risen. But it's rather the Sony Group, it seems that there has been a harsher view on the Sony Group. So what do you think as a CEO? And you have announced the share buyback, but the the market capitalization, in order to raise the market capitalization, do you have any continuous way to keep that going up? All right, thank you for your question. And about the stock price, so we had several information revisions, but it's not performing well. So I think you have various thoughts about that. But one thing is that memory, the concerns for the memory, supply and as the industry yes that is one concern and the other is the entertainment stock generally speaking is because the capital AI related would go to the AI related so I think that's why and then for us what we can do is that As a business, we look at the fundamentals to make it even stronger and the profitability we would improve so that the portfolio can be optimized. And for us, the Sony long-term strategy, we would believe in that so that we would implement that so that the business performance can be improved, and such measures would be communicated message to the stock market so that the stock market would value our approach. And we are going to put our efforts into it. That's all for me. The AI, well, excuse me, but that's the end of your two questions.

Next question. Yoshida-san from Nikkei, please. Yoshida from Nikkei, can you hear? Yes, we're here. I also have two questions. First, about ET&S structural reform. Today, you have mentioned that the TV business, you're going to move to a joint venture with TCL. And you talked about synergies. So separating the TV business, what's the intent of that? And home entertainment, what's the scope? I'm sure that the details are being still discussed, so to the extent possible, can you describe the range that this covers? And also, Smartphone also positioned as structural reform business, and you have hitherto explained that they will be continued. Has there not been any change to that status? Is an option to collaborate with external source? Thank you. For the smartphone, we don't have such plans. So with TCL, we have a strategic partnership for home entertainment. So this is about the review of portfolio, and we are constantly doing that to deal with the changing business environment. So optimizing that is the management mission. So Sony has assets that we have accumulated over many years, and we're combining that with the strengths of TCL. And so home entertainment business, including TV, can grow more through this partnership. That is the background to this partnership. And the scope of what business to be covered, Hori will explain. Thank you for the question. So this strategic partnership, the scope of that, as you point out, it's TV. and home audio. Those are the areas that we assume will be included. As you point out, the details are still being discussed. So at an appropriate timing, we would like to communicate to you. At this point of time, TV and home audio will be included in the scope. Thank you. Second question about the game business. So this was mentioned in the previous question. So with the surging memory price, so you have secured the supply until the next year-end campaign. So you maybe have secured the supply, but would there be impact of the rising prices? For example, PS5, any price increases? Or the successor? uh the timing that it will be introduced and what will be the impact to the next fiscal year can you give us your assumptions please so ps5 next fiscal year and onwards what will be the impact there so for the business results for next fiscal year we would like to inform you at that appropriate time but the our thinking is what we like to share with you that is ps5 since launch it's in the sixth year so 92 million units install base on a sell-in basis we already have established so we have been able to develop a very robust ecosystem and this fiscal year as well the majority of the sales is software contents and network service And these areas, next fiscal year onwards, are going to continue to make significant contributions. And that will be the part that will not be impacted by the memory price. Now, as for the new PlayStation hardware sales, due to cost increases, there will be some impact. However, it's in the latter part of the life cycle. So that means that in terms of hardware cells, it's been expected all along that it will gradually decline or slow down. So there are several or a wide range of choices or options that we can take. So that's our basic thinking there.

Thank you. Moving on to the next question. So I'm very sorry. Please ask both of your questions at the beginning. Yomiuri newspaper, Nakayama-san, please. Nakayama-san, do you hear me? So this is Nakayama from Yomiuri. Do you hear me? So I have two questions. Number one about music, the streaming revenue growth rate. So do you think the music streaming service will continue to do well? We would like to hear your prospects. And about INSS. The image sensor for mobile, do you have any background on the increase in the unit price of image sensors for mobile? I will answer the question on the music business first. The music business market we see will continue to grow in the mid to long term. Of course, the extent of growth will differ due to the timing, but we believe there will be a constant growth of to about five to middle to latter single digit. And there are two drivers to this. First is DSP. That is platform that we offer service on. the ARPU or ARPU is going up. And also the number of users going up. So the average revenue per user and the number of users going up is driving the growth. The second point about INSS semiconductor, Ori-san or Hori will answer. The sensor, so this is the background of increase in the selling price of mobile sensors. As you know, in smartphone products, uh there is uh the the camera feature is a main reason for increasing price so the smartphone manufacturers are working to increase the camera resolutions as well as the camera features the image sensors that we provide to the manufacturers we want to increase the size as well as increase the resolution and add new features so large scale image sensors as well as increased performance is leading to higher price and that is really contributing to our results this year that's all thank you all right so you take another question

So free lines. Yamamoto-san, please. Yes, my name is Yamamoto. So let me ask questions. So about the structural reform and TCL, so we have the strategic alliance, but the the display to have the higher resolution. And the home entertainment, I think, though you have the high resolution. I think it is contributing to the technology and also the common kind of R&D. Do you separate the two, the technology and the common R&D base, in order to have the next phase of development? So about the strategic alliance, would you tell us your direction or your strategy? Yes, thank you for the question. So first, so we have the basic agreement, and for the technology and for what kind of asset can we have to the joint venture to have the definitive contract. So we are in discussion in order to aim for the final agreement. So if it is confirmed, then we would tell you when it is confirmed.

Running short on time, so the next one will be the last question. Shino-san of Asahi Shimbun, please. Shino-san, do you hear? Well, then we'll move on to the next person from Mainichi Shimbun, Seno-san, please. Do you hear us, Seno-san? Can you hear? Yes, we can hear you. Excuse me. This is Senno from Mainichi Shimbun. Earlier, you talked about the PlayStation 5 lifecycle that you're entering the latter half of the lifecycle. But last November, you talked about the Japanese dedicated model for PlayStation, a relatively cheap, lower-priced model for the Japanese market. So what's the reason for introducing this kind of model in the latter part of the lifecycle? And what will be the impact to the financial results? Has there been impact from introducing this new model? Thank you. So the Japan model introduction, well, that was to enhance the presence of PlayStation in the Japanese market. It's one part of that effort. Compared with the global model, it was more reasonably priced. And so publishers and users appreciated that more affordable price. And after launch, in terms of sell-through, it has created an uplift. Now, this was not a special model just for that seasonal effort, but for the mid to long term for the Japanese market. we think that this had the strategic significance. So we want many users to buy this so that publishers will make great games. So we think in that regard, this will have mid to long term impact.

Now, it's time to conclude the Q&A session for the media. The So the Q&A session for investors and analysts will start from 45 past four. So we will be starting the Q&A sessions for investors and analysts in due course. So please wait until we resume. Okay, thank you for waiting. We will now begin the Q&A session for investors and analysts. I am Kondo from the IR department and I will be your moderator. The speakers will be the same three individuals as in the media session. We will now start the Q&A session. So please keep to two questions and please ask both of the questions at the beginning. Please click the raise hand button in the WebEX screen if you have any questions. JP Morgan with Ayada-san, please. Thank you. I'm Ayada from JP Morgan. I have two questions. The first question is about gaming. the play time and so what do you think about the status of play time and spending in the holiday season active users have gone up two percent but play time is flat and software network revenue is going up but uh thinking about the price up i think in terms of value or volume it's more or less flat so it seems like uh it's uh dwindling a little bit is it because of the economic cycle business cycle or console cycle or is this an impact from the title lineup or are people using time for things other than games so we would like your take on that your second question So this might be an abstract question. The impact of AI to the entertainment industry, how should we see that? For music production and game development, already 90% of creators use AI, so based on the data. So for by the creators using AI, if there's more content, that would be a very positive effect on platforms such as PlayStation and Crunchyroll? Or if users use more time in casual content using AI, would that be negative? So I think the repercussions will be different whether it's music, anime, games, or video production. So please share your view. Thank you for the question about the engagement of games in the holiday season. I think this is transitioning quite well. Of course, the playtime. I think there are many factors. influencing the play time but i think the biggest factor i think is whether there's our hit games up till now the games maybe the large-scale games which everyone has been playing up till now the engagement has gone down and instead the players are playing new games As a platform, we see a momentum, but depending on the game title, how that is played and the play time will be different. Towards the next fiscal year, the large scale titles will be launched. So I'm very optimistic about this and about how we see AI. As you say, music, game and animation How AI is used or the positioning of AI is different. There is high affinity between AI and game and animation. In the long term, I think it's a very positive thing that there will be more content. But there would be impact in many areas, especially how you develop and produce. So this process from idea to game, I think, would be changing. But it's still early in the day to say what the impact would be and what would be the impact on the cost. So at this point of time, it's difficult to really say. But what we can say right now is to use a lot of AI. So we promote using AI, especially in game production. And if that disrupts the existing process, we should be the one disrupting rather than the one being disrupted. That's all. Thank you.

Thank you. All right, so next question from BOA Securities, Ms. Hirakawa. Yes, BOA Securities. My name is Hirakawa. So first question is, well, it's a rather abstract question, but this is the second year of the midterm business plan, but the operating profit growth is like 10% average. as you go, and then this year it has progressed very smoothly. And the concern from the market is that the next year, the profit level, because of the memory or the untransparent price movements, then it might not be so smooth. What I want to ask you here is now, in the mid-term business plan, so what kind of certainty do you have, and what kind of risk factors do you have in achieving, or what kind of upside do you have? So if you can allude to that is the first question. And the second question is about what you have said. So image sensor, INSS, so what I have heard is a high end So ASB rise and the volume expansion, you can have both. So that, I think, was the main thing that you wanted to message to us. Okay, thank you for the question. And about the midterm plan, so the second year, and we are going on quite smoothly. Yes, that is the... feeling we have about the memory price surge. And we can understand the concern from the market about this. And this earnings results for the next year, I think we can go into this more deeper. But basically speaking, we would have the momentum very strong here, and the memory cost rise, so we have to manage that. And that's the kind of direction we have, and the profitability, of course, we have in mind. And for the attainment of the midterm plan, how certain we are or how confident we are, so it depends on each business segment. But let's say game and Sony Pictures, so next year's software lineup is quite good. So for those segments, I think we have quite a positive kind of outlook. And for the detail, I don't think I can go into here. So for the earnings results for the 2025 fiscal year, I can maybe tell you more about it. And the ESP and the semiconductor and the volume OK, for this question, I would like to ask Hori-san to answer. All right, thank you for the question. So in the speech, we have said that this year, what we have seen this year, OK, and what we are seeing SP and the volume, also we have momentum. So for next year, it's like a launch pad, let's say, that it's in a good position. So I think we can say that we are in a positive position. Having said that, in the semiconductor business, there's other businesses like Game or Iken. So memory, market condition, effect, end. Let's say the selection or the options range is different, is what I feel. So the final product manufacturers, well, so what kind of measures would they be taking because of this memory market condition? And we would like to have close contact communication with the customers so that we can have good understanding of each of the customers we have. And that's the procedure we take, but I think we are rather in a passive mode concerning this because of this kind of a characteristic business. And for next year, I think we have a good launch pad in place. And that's exactly as what you have pointed out. Thank you.

Next from Mizuho Securities, Nakane-san, please. Thank you. Can you hear? Yes, we hear you. Thank you. Two questions. First, so expanding the share buyback. So before you used it up, The facility is being expanded. I think this is the first time you're doing that. You have higher cash flow. Stock price is low. I think those are the backgrounds. So talk about what discussions you had in the board meeting, and what's the message of expanding this facility in addition to what's in the release? That's the first question. Second, about the home entertainment separation. So from development, design, manufacture, that part, I think it's easy to separate cleanly. But for sales, you have the common platform. And domestic and overseas, I think it's still quite a huge size. I understand that the details are still to be worked out. But for the next fiscal year, in terms of sales, how is it going to be handled and on the etns side inclusive of structural reform is there a possibility of some adjustments to be made give us some clues please thank you for the questions first about increasing the facility to repurchase shares so as you say the business results and the cash flow is better than anticipated, so we want to increase our returns based on that. But in terms of the window, that is up until middle of May, so 50 billion increase is what we've decided on this time. So the company's momentum of earnings and the fundamentals, we are confident about that. That is the message that we would like you to take from this increase in the facility. About the ET&S, for next fiscal year, basically, ET&S will continue to operate. It will have its budget in the same way. and we will communicate in that way. For the joint venture, it's to start from April of fiscal 27. So in terms of the additional structural reform for the portfolio, it's always dynamic. So looking at the business situation, It's our job to optimize that. It's one of our main missions. As of now, nothing has been decided yet. That's all. Thank you.

Thank you very much. SMBC Nikko Securities, Katsura-san, please. So I'm Katsura from SMBC Nikko Securities. I have two questions on game and semiconductor. About the gaming question, This quarter, how we see the profit, the third quarter, so compared to the real profitability of first and second quarters, I think the third quarter profit has gone down. This is about the domestic version of hardware and you did also promotion activity. and also the procurement side there has been maybe you purchased a memory in order to secure the inventory so the landing of the third quarter and also the full year so the postponement of first party title might be a negative factor so these numbers seemed a little bit low so maybe you have included some of the countermeasures towards the next term and the second point is i and ss you said you will be taking measures in the fourth quarter so if you can say we would like you to share us the scale of this measure so my question is about your plan towards the next year thank you for the question about the third quarter profitability for gaming going down compared to the first and second quarter so there was the main reason was the end of the year sale promotion of the hardware in addition to the japan domestic model we did global promotion and that led to many users purchasing the console and that due to that the profit went down in the third quarter but this will contribute to the mid to long term lifetime value and towards the end of the fiscal year as of now the inventory we do not have any plans to do anything extraordinary on the inventory. INSS, we have factored in a part of that into the fourth quarter. Hori will respond. So as we have explained, the business balance within INSS segment and some of the assets depreciation, amortization done in acceleration. So this type of treatment is currently being processed. And about the scale, about 20 billion. So this one time cost of 20 billion is really factored into the fourth quarter. Thank you.

All right, so we have not much remaining time. So the next question is going to be the last. Excuse us, but please keep your question just one. So Ms. Murakata from Goldman Sachs, please. Yes, my name is from Goldman Sachs. Thank you very much for giving this opportunity to ask question. I think you have been saying about the generative AI. I'd like to ask question about that. And so last week, so Project Genie was announced, and Basically speaking, so general AI, generative AI, I think is an opportunity and also a threat. So in the stock market, so the generative AI, so the creation might be done by that so that a very interesting game can be made in an instant so that I think a threat is more... strong here but in the game creation so there has been some comments that to have it in a positive manner but with the generative AI becoming developing so what is the strength of your game studios and game development what is your strength in that so I appreciate you to ask to answer this question thank you well but the generative AI so in the various ways there are trials going on, and now it's in a test stage, I think. And there are very interesting things that's happening, but before, I think it's before the commercialization. And as for game, it's not just game, but so AI... I think it can be in a toolbox that there's a very strong tool in the toolbox. That's kind of a feeling we have against AI. So tool itself, it's not going to be a business. So I think we need the sensitivity of artists and the tool to integrate in order to have another business chance or to have entertainment. So that's the kind of understanding we have. In that sense, AI, I don't think it's a threat, but so that the creators can use AI fast way, and then we are going to help them make it the commercial product. So I think that's the Sony's mission. Thank you.

With that, we would like to conclude the earnings announcement of Sony Group. Thank you very much for joining.