Sony released today the presentation of its upcoming corporate strategy, and it included some quite interesting data related to Sony Computer Entertainment and the PlayStation brand.
First of all, the company is putting games at the front and center of its growth strategy for the next three years, alongside devices, pictures and music, setting “profit generation and investment for growth”as the theme for its mid-range corporate plan from fiscal year 2015 through 2017.
Sony is positioning Devices, Game & Network Services, Pictures, and Music as the segments that will drive its profit growth over the next three years. It will implement growth measures and engage in aggressive capital investment in these areas with the aim of achieving both sales growth and profit expansion.
Specifically, Sony plans to further expand the installed base of its consoles and PlayStation Network users.
In Games & Network Services, the Company will strive to further expand the installed user base of the PlayStation® platform and PlayStation®Network (“PSN”).
On the other hand, the Imaging Products & Solutions and Video & Sound segments have been classified as "stable profit generators," while the TV and Mobile Communications businesses have been named "Areas focusing on volatility management."
The aim is to have the three different groups behave in the way displayed in the following diagrams, with growth drivers, which include PlayStation, increasing sales, operating income and investment across the board.
This is part of a new mid-range plan based on the following points:
- Business management that emphasizes profitability, without necessarily pursuing volume.
- Business management that grants each business unit greater autonomy and mandates a focus on shareholder value.
- Clearly defined positioning of each business within a broader business portfolio perspective.
On top of that, several changes have been made to the corporate structure. You can see the new executive team below.
Here's the full list of corporate changes, motivated as follows:
Sony will also realign its management team in some areas, promoting individuals with wide-ranging experience as well as those capable of autonomous management. The new management structure will incorporate more clearly defined roles and responsibilities within each business unit and the headquarters operations.
Kenichiro Yoshida
(New)
Representative Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Deputy President and CFO
(Current)
Representative Corporate Executive Officer, EVP and CFO
Tomoyuki Suzuki
(New)
Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Deputy President
(Continues as)
Officer in charge of Device Solutions Business, RDS Platform (R&D, Common Software Design), President, Device Solutions Business Group
(Current)
Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Vice President
Masashi Imamura
(New)
Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Vice President, Officer in charge of Manufacturing, Logistics, Procurement, Quality and Environmental Platform
(Current)
Group Executive,
Representative Director and President, Sony Visual Products Inc.
Shigeki Ishizuka
(New)
Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Vice President, Officer in charge of Imaging Products & Solutions Business
President, Professional Solutions Group
(Continues as)
President, Digital Imaging Business Group
(Current)
Corporate Executive, Senior Vice President
Ichiro Takagi
(New)
Group Executive, in charge of Home Entertainment & Sound Business, Consumer AV Sales Platform, Representative Director and President, Sony Visual Products Inc.
(Continues as)
President, Video & Sound Business Group, Sony Corporation
(Current)
Corporate Executive, Senior Vice President
Shoji Nemoto
(New)
Corporate Executive, Executive Vice President, Sony Group China Representative, in charge of Disc Manufacturing Business
(Current)
Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Vice President, Officer in charge of Imaging Products & Solutions Business and Disc Manufacturing Business, President, Professional Solutions Group
Toru Katsumoto
(New)
Corporate Executive, Senior Vice President, President, Medical Business Unit
(Continues as)
Representative Director and President, Sony Olympus Medical Solutions Inc.
(Current)
Corporate Executive, Senior Vice President, Deputy President, Medical Business Unit
Three executives will also resign from their current positions at the Ordinary General Meeting of Shareholders scheduled to be held in June.
Tadashi Saito
(Current)
Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Vice President, Officer in charge of Medical Business, President, Medical Business Unit
Kunitaka Fujita
(Current)
Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Vice President, Officer in charge of Human Resources and General Affairs
Masaru Kato
(Current)
Vice Chairman, Sony Group China Representative, in charge of External Relations
In addition to that, we also get an overview of the financial target for the gaming segment, among others. The company wants to reach sales between 1,400 and 1,600 billion yen in the fiscal year 2017, increasing its operating income margin to between 5% and 6%.
The overall target is to reach an operating income for the whole corporation of over 500 billion yen.
