Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai has spoken out on Sony’s current situation, looking back on his first year since taking over for Howard Stringer in January 2012. Speaking to The Wall Street Journal, Hirai said that Vita sales were “on the low end of what we expected,” adding that “long term is what is important.”
Hirai said that holiday sales were “pretty much” in line with expectations, though Sony lowered its estimated revenue for the year. Looking at Sony’s other arms, Hirai added that the TV business “continues to be an important area,” but that to return to profit “the first thing we need to do is not to pump more TVs into the market, because they’re money losers at this point. We’ve got to stop the bleeding first.”
As for rumors that Sony Pictures and Sony Music could be for sale, Hirai simply said “I’ve said this so many times, but those properties are not for sale. A lot of people may say if Sony puts it up for sale, we’d be interested. But that’s different than Sony putting it up for sale. They’re not for sale.”
Finally, Hirai also commented on Nvidia’s recently-announced Project Shield handheld. Hirai noted that creating gaming hardware is a very competitive business that has led to struggles from many manufacturers. “It’s not an easy business to get into,” he said.
[Via IGN]
