Next-Gen reports that Sony has managed to make a significant improvement in cutting losses in its videogame division.

The Nikkei article, via Reuters, points out that Sony’s PlayStation unit posted an operating loss of 232 billion yen for the year ended March 2007, mainly due to PlayStation 3 start-up costs. That loss is reportedly set to be slashed by 100 billion yen when the company reports its full year earnings on May 14.

This is a big improvement, but still has them in the red this fiscal year for approximately JPY 130 billion (US$1.5 billion, or 636 million British Pounds). Ironically, this would place their two-year losses at about... ulp... 360 billion. But in all likelihood on track to turn a profit this next year. Their quarterly reports show them already making a profit:

During the third-quarter Sony’s PlayStation division sales grew 31.2 percent year-on-year to 581.2 billion yen, setting a new quarterly record. The unit reported operating income of 12.9 billion yen, compared to an operating loss of 54.2 billion yen during the same quarter the previous year, “primarily due to a significant decrease in the operating losses of the PS3 business as a result of successful PS3 hardware cost reductions”.

The article goes on to state that Sony' s overall operating profit has increased, largely driven by digital camera sales, although it' s expected to come in short of their projections by JPY 30 billion.