Adele and Bond help revamped Sony escape spectre of losses

Tokyo

BRITISH pop diva Adele and suave spy James Bond may be unlikely stars in Sony's turnaround, but the firm is placing its bets on them.

The company is leaning on movies, music and soaring sales of its PlayStation (PS) video-game console to scrap years of eye-watering losses - and its faith appears to be paying off.

Last week, Sony booked a nine-month net profit of almost US$2.0 billion (S$2.9 billion), reversing a year-earlier loss. Sales of PS4, its video-game console, topped a record 30 million units in the autumn.

Sony attributes some credit to its Hollywood studio's release of Spectre, the latest instalment in the Bond series, and its music label's top-selling Adele album 25 - along with boy band One Direction's Made in the A.M. The company…