Sony has confirmed earlier rumors and stated that it is seeking to buy out its mobile phone joint venture with Ericsson for 1.05 billion Euros ($1.5 billion). This will allow Sony to better integrate mobile devices with its music stars like Beyonce, movie hits like Spider-Man and PlayStation video games.
“Its the beginning of something which I think is quite magical,” Sony Chairman Sir Howard Stringer told a news conference in London. “We can more rapidly and more widely offer consumers smartphones, laptops, tablets and televisions that seamlessly connect with one another and open up new worlds of online entertainment.”
“Sony is looking to do the same as Apple and meet users’ demands through linking various devices with similar interfaces and operating systems,” said analyst Nobuo Kurahashi of Mizuho Investors’ Securities in Tokyo. “Smartphones look to become more important products for Sony … and they will probably become the main device people use to connect to the Internet.”
“Sony had to make this deal as it had run out of options, but integration challenges could prove to be a major hurdle,” said Ben Wood, head of research at consultancy CCS Insight. “As a major consumer electronics player, lack of mobile assets had become a liability for Sony, particularly when compared with Samsung, whose telecommunication business creates nearly half of its profits.”
Source: Reuters
