Dyne
11-30-2006, 01:40 PM
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601101&sid=aPGd5E.YlTR8&refer=japan
Sony Replaces PlayStation Chief Kutaragi After Delays (Update4)
By Pavel Alpeyev
Nov. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Ken Kutaragi, the developer of Sony Corp.'s PlayStation game console, stepped aside from day-to-day management of the unit after production delays forced the company to slash shipment targets.
Kaz Hirai, head of the U.S. game division, will take over as president of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., the Tokyo-based company said in a statement today. Kutaragi, 56, will become chairman of the unit.
Sony Chief Executive Officer Howard Stringer is counting on the PlayStation 3 to revive a company that has lost almost half its market value in the past six years. Kutaragi, a 30-year Sony veteran, in September cut 2006 shipment targets by half because of parts shortages.
``Given that PlayStation 3's main market may be overseas, turning to people who know that business is understandable,'' said Naoki Fujiwara, who manages $720 million at Shinkin Asset Management Co. in Tokyo.
Sony cut the Japan price of the PlayStation 3 by 20 percent to help lure buyers from Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 and Nintendo Co.'s Wii consoles, which sell for about half as much. The PlayStation 3 went on sale earlier this month and the company aims to ship 2 million units this year.
$20 Billion Business
Kutaragi led the team that developed the PlayStation brand in 1994, giving Sony the biggest share of a $20 billion industry.
``Kutaragi will focus on overseeing the entire operation rather than day-to-day business,'' said Nanako Kato, Sony Computer Entertainment's spokeswoman. His position at ``the top of the management doesn't change.''
The company probably missed its goal of having 400,000 players in the U.S. when it went on sale Nov. 17, analysts including Merrill Lynch & Co.'s Justin Post and Paul-Jon McNealy at American Technology Research said this month.
Hirai, whose full name is Kazuo, will start his new job tomorrow, the company said. The 45-year-old joined CBS/Sony Inc., now Sony Music Entertainment Japan, in 1984, at the same time that Stringer was an executive producer at CBS News.
After joining Sony Computer in 1995, Hirai oversaw the U.S. introduction of the PlayStation, PlayStation 2 and the PlayStation Portable game players. He also led Sony into online game-playing in 2002, gaining more than 2 million users, according to Sony Computer's Web site. Hirai has been president of Sony Computer America Inc. since 2003.
Declining Outlook
Sony on Oct. 20 cut its full-year net income forecast to a five-year low of 80 billion yen ($688 million), from an earlier estimate of 130 billion yen. The reduction was caused by the PlayStation 3 price cut and a battery recall that was the largest in the history of consumer electronics.
The games division had an operating loss of 43.5 billion yen as sales dropped 21 percent in the three months ended Sept. 30.
Hey, that reminds me..
In January, Allard and the rest of the Xbox senior executives gathered to write brief statements on what motivates them to come to work every morning. The mission: to inspire the group's rank and file. "Most people put down flowery, make-the-world-a-better-place, Miss America types of things," Allard says. "I wrote: What gets me out of bed and into the office every day is the thought of Ken Kutaragi's resignation letter, framed, hanging next to my desk."
Sony Replaces PlayStation Chief Kutaragi After Delays (Update4)
By Pavel Alpeyev
Nov. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Ken Kutaragi, the developer of Sony Corp.'s PlayStation game console, stepped aside from day-to-day management of the unit after production delays forced the company to slash shipment targets.
Kaz Hirai, head of the U.S. game division, will take over as president of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., the Tokyo-based company said in a statement today. Kutaragi, 56, will become chairman of the unit.
Sony Chief Executive Officer Howard Stringer is counting on the PlayStation 3 to revive a company that has lost almost half its market value in the past six years. Kutaragi, a 30-year Sony veteran, in September cut 2006 shipment targets by half because of parts shortages.
``Given that PlayStation 3's main market may be overseas, turning to people who know that business is understandable,'' said Naoki Fujiwara, who manages $720 million at Shinkin Asset Management Co. in Tokyo.
Sony cut the Japan price of the PlayStation 3 by 20 percent to help lure buyers from Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 and Nintendo Co.'s Wii consoles, which sell for about half as much. The PlayStation 3 went on sale earlier this month and the company aims to ship 2 million units this year.
$20 Billion Business
Kutaragi led the team that developed the PlayStation brand in 1994, giving Sony the biggest share of a $20 billion industry.
``Kutaragi will focus on overseeing the entire operation rather than day-to-day business,'' said Nanako Kato, Sony Computer Entertainment's spokeswoman. His position at ``the top of the management doesn't change.''
The company probably missed its goal of having 400,000 players in the U.S. when it went on sale Nov. 17, analysts including Merrill Lynch & Co.'s Justin Post and Paul-Jon McNealy at American Technology Research said this month.
Hirai, whose full name is Kazuo, will start his new job tomorrow, the company said. The 45-year-old joined CBS/Sony Inc., now Sony Music Entertainment Japan, in 1984, at the same time that Stringer was an executive producer at CBS News.
After joining Sony Computer in 1995, Hirai oversaw the U.S. introduction of the PlayStation, PlayStation 2 and the PlayStation Portable game players. He also led Sony into online game-playing in 2002, gaining more than 2 million users, according to Sony Computer's Web site. Hirai has been president of Sony Computer America Inc. since 2003.
Declining Outlook
Sony on Oct. 20 cut its full-year net income forecast to a five-year low of 80 billion yen ($688 million), from an earlier estimate of 130 billion yen. The reduction was caused by the PlayStation 3 price cut and a battery recall that was the largest in the history of consumer electronics.
The games division had an operating loss of 43.5 billion yen as sales dropped 21 percent in the three months ended Sept. 30.
Hey, that reminds me..
In January, Allard and the rest of the Xbox senior executives gathered to write brief statements on what motivates them to come to work every morning. The mission: to inspire the group's rank and file. "Most people put down flowery, make-the-world-a-better-place, Miss America types of things," Allard says. "I wrote: What gets me out of bed and into the office every day is the thought of Ken Kutaragi's resignation letter, framed, hanging next to my desk."