The electronics business, which accounts for about three- quarters of Sony's sales, has fallen on hard times, posting operating losses for three straight quarters. In the three months to Sept. 30, the business had a loss of ?24.9 billion as Sony sold fewer chips, computer components such as disk drives and bulky cathode-ray tube monitors and televisions.
For the year ending March, Sony forecast an operating profit of about ?25 billion in its consumer electronics operations, a 90 percent decline from last year.
Also worrying for Sony, it was forced to recall 1.1 million Web-linked cell phones because of software errors and defective batteries. The recall cost Sony more than ?45 billion.
"Sony is clearly losing its brand image," said Hiroaki Owaki, an in-house analyst at ABN Amro Asset Management, which manages ?110 billion in Japanese equities, including Sony shares. "Sony had a number of products with glitches this year."
Owaki said Sony's shares, which at almost ?6,000 are more than three times as expensive as rival Matsushita Electric's, are overpriced.
To recharge earnings, Idei and Ando plan to focus on the Internet. The maker of the Wega flat-screen television this year accelerated the release of consumer-electronics products able to access the Web.
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