It’s no secret that Sony hasn’t being doing well in the mobile arena this past year and while there a number of factors that appear to making the largest impact on Sony’s struggles, it seems that management might have been one of them. At least, that’s what the latest move at Sony makes it looks like, as the company has appointed a new head to the Mobile Communications division, with Kazuo Hirai (the company’s CEO) choosing one of his closest associates. When a division like this is struggling, it’s no surprise that changes will be made, but whether or not this is the right move is something only time will tell.
Reuters is reporting that Kazuo Hirai has appointed Hiroki Totoki as the new President of the mobile division and that he will take over from Kunimasa Suzuki on November 16th. As of right now, Mr Totoki has been serving as the company’s corporate planning director and it’s been said that Hirai called him in for a meeting along with Sony’s CFO, Kenichiro Yoshida to make the change. From our perspective, it seems like Sony’s mobile division needs a change at the helm, with flagship devices being released twice a year into a market that’s crowded as it is, and budget-minded handsets being launched seemingly once a month, it’s clear that Sony Mobile needs a little focus.
Hopefully, Mr Totoki can use some of his experience as corporate planning director to bring this focus to the mobile division and more importantly, make 2015 a year of stability for the fledgling department. We’re sizable fans of Sony’s latest efforts, and I use an Xperia Z2 daily as my smartphone of choice, and we were very impressed with the recent launch of the Xperia Z3v on Verizon. Less phones and a more focused marketing push for Sony could be just what the Doctor ordered, as they do make some of the best Android devices available, they just need to clean up their line of devices and cut down on the amount of budget-minded handsets that can’t be doing wonders for their bottom line. What do you think Sony need to do to turn things around? Let us know in the comments below!