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Kazuo Hirai

Sony CEO Predicts 20-Yr High Op. Profit; Says Co. Needs More Innovation

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Photo of display of Sony TVsSony CEO Kazuo Hirai is feeling pretty good these days. After an incredibly tough turnaround period where many questioned his plan, Hirai said this week that the company expects to book an operating profit of ¥500 billion ($4.5 billion) in the fiscal year ending March 2018, its highest operating profit in 20-years according to a report by the Nikkei. But the CEO admits that, as good as this news is, the company is still short of a full turnaround.

What’s needed for a complete turnaround of Sony’s business? Innovation…

See more on what Sony’s CEO says the company needs to do… [Read more…] about Sony CEO Predicts 20-Yr High Op. Profit; Says Co. Needs More Innovation

Film Flops Force Sony to Take $1Billion Writedown

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Sony's Movie Business is in TroubleSony Corps’ struggling film division, which hasn’t seen a major hit movie in a long while, has finally forced the company to take a writedown against third quarter earnings of a substantial $1 billion. The difficult decision was necessary to adjust or right-size the value of their operations and will mostly be booked against goodwill – to reset the value of the various film-related divisions.

Why is Sony CEO Hirai setting up an office in Culver City, California?… [Read more…] about Film Flops Force Sony to Take $1Billion Writedown

Sony Makes It Official – We Are OLED

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Sony's Kazuo HiraiIt was a strange press conference as compared to those held by Sony in the past – only one speaker (Kazuo Hirai) who methodically gave a summary of the new models the company was launching at this CES. The whole press event lasted a mere 24 minutes. No Hollywood movie stars…no musical performances…no custom video clips…no movie clips…no cars driving on the stage. Just the Sony CEO calmly listing the new models. In fact, at one point, Hirai introduced Sony US President Mike Fasulo who stood and waved to the audience – then was told to sit down and not steal Hirai’s spotlight. Strange…

But there was one really big star of the conference – the company announced the new Bravia OLED TVs, a major expansion of the OLED camp.

See more on Sony’s OLED announcement…and other new models… [Read more…] about Sony Makes It Official – We Are OLED

Sony’s Tightened Partnership with Best Buy Credited for Biz Turnaround

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Newly Spun-Off TV Division May Show a Profit for 1st Time in 10 Years

Photo of Sony Experience Store at Best Buy
Sony Experience Store at Best Buy

In a new report out of Japan, Sony’s TV business is said to be expected to report an operating profit this fiscal year – its first after ten years of losing money. Due to an improved situation in the U.S. market, the report credits the turnaround in Sony’s U.S. results largely as a function of its tightened partnership with retailer Best Buy.

But the report featured the subheading ‘Outlook Remains Unclear’… [Read more…] about Sony’s Tightened Partnership with Best Buy Credited for Biz Turnaround

After Fighting Idea for Years, Sony is Ready to Dump TV, A/V, & Smartphone Businesses

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Kazuo Hirai/Reuters
Kazuo Hirai/Reuters

In a revealing presentation with the press yesterday in Japan, embattled Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai told the media that the company is finally ready to consider alternatives for its TV, A/V, and smartphone businesses, including exiting them. This is a stunning turnaround in strategy, not just for the inventor of the Trinitron picture tube, but for Hirai himself who had previously identified their TV and smartphone businesses as a core categories when he first took over as CEO in 2012.

See more on Sony’s strategy to turn around their business…which has many skeptics… [Read more…] about After Fighting Idea for Years, Sony is Ready to Dump TV, A/V, & Smartphone Businesses

Amazing! Sony CEO Admits Company Failings – Says ‘Wow’ is Future

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Photo of Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai
Kazuo Hirai, Sony CEO

Sony’s CEO Kazuo Hirai gave a relatively compelling keynote presentation that was in stark contrast to their rather dry Mike Fasulo and unemotional press conference. Not only was Hirai dynamic and at times, emotional even – he competently and capably articulated a new and strong vision for the company based on the Japanese word “kando” and the English word “wow.”

See the surprising twist in the Sony CEO’s presentation…including a moment that NO other Sony CEO would ever dare to try…admitting past product failures… [Read more…] about Amazing! Sony CEO Admits Company Failings – Says ‘Wow’ is Future

Sony Slaps Senior Execs – Makes Them Give Back Pay

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Sony's Stringer and Harai at CES 2012
Sony's Former CEO Howard Stringer Introduces New CEO Kazuo Harai at CES 2012

In a public move that will probably make more sense in Japan than it will here, Sony Corp. said on Tuesday that seven top executives will return their fiscal 2011 performance-linked bonuses. The executives affected by this decision include their former CEO Howard Stringer and current CEO Kazuo Harai.

Why this announcement now?…. [Read more…] about Sony Slaps Senior Execs – Makes Them Give Back Pay