Sony Ericsson posts lower Q3 profits, will shift "entire portfolio" to smartphones in 2012

It's been a rough couple of quarters for Sony Ericsson, but things are looking slightly rosier, according to its Q3 earnings report. Today, the company announced break even year-on-year results for the third quarter of 2011, blaming the outcome on lower profit margins and higher taxes, which rose from €12 million to €17 million over the course of a year. According to the report, net profits fell to zero this quarter after reaching €49 million ($67.26 million) during Q3 2010, while sales dropped to €1.59 billion ($2.18 billion) from €1.6 billion ($2.2 billion) last year. It's not exactly an encouraging trend, but it's certainly an improvement over the last quarter, when Sony Ericsson posted a net loss of €50 million. As far as its portfolio goes, the company says its Xperia smartphones now comprise 80 percent of all sales, with some 22 million handsets already shipped to consumers. President and CEO Bert Nordberg, meanwhile, confirmed that his company will focus on this market with even more intensity, next year: "We will continue to invest in the smartphone market, shifting the entire portfolio to smartphones during 2012." You can dig through the numbers for yourself, in the full PR after the break.