Consumer electronics giant Sony this week named the British-born head of its US operations, Howard Stringer, as its new chairman and chief executive, handing the reins of the struggling Japanese corporation to a foreigner for the first time.
Sony's board agreed to appoint Mr Stringer (63) at an extraordinary meeting in Tokyo on Monday morning.
Current CEO Nobuyuki Idei (67) will step down having taken responsibility for slumping earnings during his rocky five-year tenure at the helm of the corporation.
Mr Stringer, a former TV journalist, will face the difficult task of boosting profitability at Sony.
The sprawling conglomerate's core electronics division is in danger of falling into the red for a second straight year in the business term, ending on March 31st amid tough price competition and a lack of hit products.
"The world is simply not the same place it was a few years ago. The needs and expectations of our customers have changed.
"The dynamics of the competitive landscape have changed," Mr Stringer told a briefing.
"So Sony too must change."
A native of Wales who holds dual British and US citizenship, Mr Stringer will become the first non-Japanese executive to run Sony, which was established in 1946 as a maker of telecoms and measuring equipment - and grew into one of the world's most recognised brands.
Under Mr Idei's watch, the company that invented the Walkman has been outmanoeuvred by rivals Sharp and Matsushita Electric Industrial in the flat-panel television sector.
It has also lost its lead in the portable music industry to Apple and its popular iPod player.
President Kunitake Ando will also lose his job as part of the major management overhaul.
The firm's stock has tumbled about 60 per cent since Mr Idei assumed the roles of chairman and CEO in June 2000, underperforming Matsushita and the benchmark Nikkei average, which are down roughly 40 and 30 per cent over the same period. - (Reuters)
