Sony is reportedly building a new smartphone factory in Thailand, which will be its first in over 20 years. In light of this, it seems like Sony Mobile is here to stay, despite what the company’s CEO mentioned a few weeks ago.
The opening of the new smartphone factory is odd, considering what the CEO of Sony, Kazuo Hirai, had to say. Several weeks ago, he mentioned that Sony Mobile has to be profitable (or break-even, at the very least) by next year. Otherwise, the company will be looking at “alternative options,” which could include selling off the mobile division.
If Sony isn’t confident that its mobile division will be able to start raking in profit next year, it would be very optimistic of the company to build its first smartphone factory in 20 years. The fact that it will cost several billion yen to build just shows how committed Sony is to the mobile space.
Perhaps Sony’s mobile really isn’t going anywhere, just like what the CEO of Sony Mobile (Hiroki Totoki) claimed. The company “will never ever sell or exit from the current mobile business,” he said. In any case, it’s good to see Sony being dedicated to its mobile division. After all, the company produces very good Android devices, such as the Xperia Z3.
(Source: Nikkei via Xperia Blog)
