There’ll be no wad in the back pocket of Sony gaffer Kaz Hirai this week, as the ex-PlayStation president – along with 40 of the organisation’s top executives – will forfeit their bonuses ahead of this week’s expected billion dollar loss. It’s believed that many of the senior employees will sacrifice a third of their annual salary, while some may give up on up to 50 per cent of their yearly wage. This move will apparently save the company $10 million in total.
While that sounds like a lot, it’s nothing compared to the $1.3 billion loss that the firm’s set to confirm during its earnings call tomorrow. Worryingly, the Japanese giant had expected to make a profit this year, but the sale of its Vaio computer business hasn’t quite gone to plan, forcing it to a fourth annual loss in five years. By soaking up the negative numbers this time around, the organisation hopes to have a better run at profitability next year.
And there are at least positive signs. For starters, the PlayStation 4 is selling incredibly well, while its television division is in the process of being separated. Since being appointed to the big office, the Ridge Racer aficionado has successfully trimmed a lot of the company’s excess fat, selling off unnecessary stocks, buildings, and factories in order to give the firm a fighting chance in the future. The board will no doubt be expecting results soon, though.
Kaz Hirai’s long-term strategy speech will be pivotal later this month, then, in which he’s set to outline his vision for the company. Previously, the veteran employee had cited gaming, imaging technology, and mobile as the future of the business, and with those areas performing well, it’s unlikely that that focus will change. Regardless, we’re just hoping that some good GIFs of the affable executive sneak their way out of the presentation.
[source reuters.com, via online.wsj.com]
Comments 13
20 million moolah a year.... Maybe that number is to much in general. Why do CEO's and atlete's earn that many cash?
@SimonAdebisi Oohw C'mon aren't you the capatalist American? xD ?Stereotypes. I just think no one deserves that many money. Maybe 2 million oke! But 20 million? You can have a lot of employees for that money! Well, i'm actually i don't have the right to complain since i will be making money in the 5 digits in the near future.
@Sanquine That number will also grow in the next two years, they'll get more pay raises in that time than any regular employee, who can be terminated because of the billion dollar loss.
Income inequality is ridiculous. By the way, communists had income inequality. So yeah, might want to re-consider what may be communist or not on this Earth.
I bet Kaz is wondering when the losses will end....
@SimonAdebisi Ha! I prefer none of those ideologies. Capatalism and Communism are broken. There is one ideology that i saw potential in..
@MadchesterManc Well, selling of the TV and Vaio/ PC business was a very smart move. I think next year they will be in black.
It's a shame SONY keep losing money & Microsoft keep making money
what a jab their Carl-G
I'm pretty sure Sony will be making money by next year. The TV and PC business was losing a lot of money. In fact, those two same branches were losing a ton of money before which was causing a huge loss for Sony, so this is good they got rid of that weight. There was a point though where sony did make a profit which was like a year or two ago, but then that crapstorm hit the PC and TV market for Sony which really boosted that loss.
I really hope people aren't getting worried here, I know some people are worried but this is business and it does happen, Kaz is really working hard to get out of the crapper along with others helping him. As for the people that want Sony to sink, it's not going to happen.
Whilst it's admirable that they are returning their bonuses due to the company underperforming as a whole I question whether $10 million saving will do anything in the face of the $1.3 billion loss.
Also, it seems unfair if those people that worked their skin off to produce excellent results individually are penalised through no fault of their own just because the company as a whole has made a loss. It's one thing for specific staff members to forgo their bonus if they individually fall short of expectations within their job roles but this mass forfeit of bonuses does not make Sony look attractive for ambitious and aspiring talent to seek employment and promotion within. Sony need that talent now more than ever and the last thing they need is an outflow of potentially their best and brightest.
On the other hand, if it turns out that lots of those staff members who returned their bonuses did so because they didn't meet their individual job responsibilities then that's a very different and real problem all of it's own.
@Carl-G Microsoft is Sony's friend right now and they are working well together competitively and cooperatively to keep the concept of games consoles alive and relevant. They are both making money out of this market and rightfully so if you ask me. In fact, it could be argued that as Microsoft increases the money they make from Xbox then so too does Sony with PlayStation.
Instead, it is the likes of Samsung, LG, Lenovo and Huawei who have really stolen Sony's lunch and have put the pain on their house. If you must regret that other companies have made money while Sony has not then these are the ones you should be targeting with your disdain because they are the ones who have dealt much more devastating competitive blows to Sony's business.
Sony are slowly returning to being pioneers in the electronics world. They were quite "****y" for about a decade, but then they suddenly release cool **** like PS4, Xperia Z1 and Z2 and their latest TVs are brilliant. Hopefully they can focus more and return to profitability. A tech world without Sony would be a sad world indeed...
@Shaolin No, just stop it. Sony has never liked Microsoft, Sony not wanting to team up with them is what them jump into the console race - they're trying to make Sony regret not letting them ride their coat-tails.
@seeafish That's exactly why I plan to get a Z1 Compact once I have the money. Samsung phones are more brand appeal, than quality these days.
@BornOfEvil
Its kinda funny how that happened, I mean Nintendo and Sony's short-lived partnership lead to Sony entering the market, and Sony not partnering with Microsoft lead to them entering too. I think Microsoft even have tried to partner with SEGA at one point. Apparently nobody wants to work with them.
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