The Verge - Sony in transition: a new CEO takes control amidst mounting losses

Sony mulls investor proposal to sell off movie, TV, and music units

2013-05-22T00:41:03Z

With Sony under increasing pressure to get out of the entertainment business and get back to making great gadgets, company managers have begun to evaluate whether to sell off part of the unit that oversees movies, TV and music, according to a report today from Nikkei, a Japan-based newspaper.

The move follows comments made last week by Daniel Loeb, the US billionaire investor who owns $1.1 billion worth of Sony's stock, equal to about six percent of the company's outstanding shares. He said last week that he wanted Sony's leadership to sell off as much as 20 percent of the company's entertainment holdings, which includes Sony Pictures and Sony Music Entertainment, Reuters reported on Tuesday. Loeb suggested that the money from a sale...

Sony makes first net profit in five years despite falling demand for core products

2013-05-09T06:09:13Z

Sony is back in the black after posting its first full-year net profit in five years. The company made a net profit of ¥43 billion ($458 million) in the 2012 financial year — an increase on its forecast of ¥40 billion ($404 million) — following a loss of ¥457 billion ($5.7 billion) in 2011. Operating profit was ¥230.1 billion ($2.45 billion), up from a ¥67.3 billion ($820 million) loss last year.

Sony Mobile CEO targets profitability in 2013 fiscal year, expects over 34 million units sold

2013-03-04T18:09:22Z

Kaz Hirai's vision for turning Sony around — a plan called "One Sony" — revolved around strengthening the company's three core businesses: digital imaging, gaming, and mobile. Hirai first announced that plan a year ago, and now the company is making some promises. Kunimasa Suzuki, CEO of Sony Mobile, told reporters that it plans to sell over 34 million smartphones and tablets in the fiscal year beginning April 1st, according to Bloomberg. With the boost in sales, the unit expects to be profitable over the fiscal year as well, and it plans to take third place in global smartphone marketshare from Huawei. Sony was 1 million in shipments behind the Chinese manufacturer, with a 0.4 percent smaller marketshare in the latest IDC quarterly...

Sony agrees to sell US headquarters for $1.1 billion

2013-01-18T03:32:02Z

Sony will sell its US headquarters building to investors for $1.1 billion, according to Bloomberg. The sale is expected to generate net cash of around $770 million for Sony, which is working to cut losses across the board. The company will continue occupying the 37-story building at 550 Madison Avenue for up to three years, leasing from new owners the Chetrit Group, which also co-owns Willis Tower in Chicago. The building was previously owned by AT&T, which sold it to Sony in 2002 for $236 million.

Sony hopes to complete the sale in March — perhaps not coincidentally the end of its fiscal year, by which it has predicted a return to profit. The company is said to be currently re-evaluating its predictions based on the sale, however, so...

Sony CEO Kaz Hirai: 'We need to be a more focused company'

2013-01-08T21:06:21Z

I just had a chance to sit down with Sony president and CEO Kaz Hirai for an enlightening chat about the electronics-maker's past, present, and future. Topics up for discussion include the company's new line of 4K televisions (including that new prototype OLED model), the Xperia line of Android phones and potential expansion to other platforms, and what the road ahead looks like for Sony. Kaz offers a glimpse into the mind of the Japanese monolith, with a surprisingly candid take on the rough times its experienced over the past few years. Check out the video below for the full chat, and stay tuned for more from Sony at CES 2013.

Sony's stock hits 32-year low on convertible bond sale as it tries to grow imaging business

2012-11-15T03:11:15Z

Sony is turning to the open market to raise money for a new expansion, the company announced yesterday. The plan is to raise 150 billion yen (about $1.9 billion) by selling 5-year convertible bonds, its first such sale since 2003, reports Bloomberg. Of the cash, 60 billion will be used to invest in CMOS image sensor production (separate from its investment in June), another 60 billion will repay debts from its Gaikai and Olympus share acquisitions, and 30 billion will repay other bonds that are coming due next year.

Constrained by a low credit rating

Last week, Moody’s cut Sony’s credit rating to near-junk status and an analyst at Fisco Ltd. postulated to Bloomberg that the company didn’t have much of a choice about how to raise...

Sony slims losses despite declining sales

2012-11-01T06:06:39Z

Sony announced its second-quarter financial results today, and things are beginning to turn around following last year’s $5.7 billion loss and a disappointing first quarter. While the company lost $198 million on $20.5 billion in revenue, it was a significant improvement over both last quarter's $312 million loss and a $350 million loss at the time last year. But the improvement comes despite lackluster sales in many of Sony's biggest businesses and troubles in China that cost the company some $375 million, according to Reuters. Nevertheless, Sony managed to stick to its forecast of a $160 million net profit for the year ending March 31st, 2013.

Before taxes, Sony made an operating profit of $388 million, compared to a $20 million...

Sony to lay off more than 2,800 employees in Japan as restructuring continues

2012-10-20T18:27:05Z

When Kaz Hirai announced his "One Sony" strategy to get the company back on its feet, the new CEO explained that the initiative would include a workforce reduction of up to 10,000 employees by the end of its 2012 fiscal year. Since that announcement, Sony has slowly released details on exactly where those cuts will be made — roughly 1,000 jobs were cut as Sony Mobile moves its headquarters back from Sweden to Tokyo, and now the company has just announced information on a further 2,840 layoffs.

As part of the latest round of restructuring, production of interchangeable lenses for DSLRs, lens blocks, and mobile phones at Sony's Minokamo Site will be absorbed by the company's Kohda Site. As a result, the Minokamo Site, which accounts...