e.Digital Corporation (fka EDIG)

[cksla]

Sony Turns Focus To Mobile Devices
By TechWeb News
Mar 29, 2001 (6:41 AM)
URL: http://www.techweb.com/wire/story/TWB20010329S0001

Sony Corp. says it will upgrade its cell-phone handset operation into a full division and put more focus on mobile-computing products. As a sputtering U.S. economy and strains from its gaming division take their toll, Sony hopes to reignite its business by focusing more on mobile products, an area where Japan is leading the world and seeing brisk growth. As part of its strategic business plan for the 2001-2002 year beginning in April, Sony said it would increase the number of its major divisions, internally called “network companies,” to seven from the current five. The structure was first adopted in 1999. Sony's profits sagged in the crucial last three months of 2000; hit by production glitches on its flagship PlayStation2 game console and lingering strength in the yen, it cut its full-year net-profit forecast in half.