Sony has reported a lower-than-expected profit, due to sagging revenue from its thriving gaming business.

Despite the lower gaming revenue, Sony’s quarterly result was a record high. Sony said operating profit rose 7.5 per cent to 376.99 billion yen or US$3.46 billion in October-December.

After battling years of losses with consumer electronics, Sony has reinvented itself as an entertainment company with stable revenue from music content and gaming.

There was a surge in profit at its music business after completing the $2.3 billion acquisition of EMI late last year.

However, profit in the gaming business fell 14 per cent as the underwhelming popularity of exclusive titles such as Marvel’s Spider-Man failed to turn around shrinking PS4 console sales.