Sony Computer Entertainment boss Kaz Hirai is on a mission. A mission to make money for Sony's PlayStation division.
"We need to quickly bring our PlayStation business on a break-even level and later to profitability," Hirai said Thursday. Sony plans to do this through cost-cutting efforts and network service expansion. According to Hirai, Sony is thinking about added PlayStation Network services to other Sony products like televisions and digital cameras.
This echoes what Sony boss Howard Stringer stated way back in 2007 — that Sony was "trying to get our devices to talk to each other efficiently. PlayStation Network should migrate from gadget to gadget."
What appears to be phase one was announced today with Sony's new phone that lets users stream media from the PS3.
"We need a strategy where buying a hardware is not the endpoint but instead a starting point that can offer new experiences to our customers," Hirai said.
An aggressive strategy is needed as Sony's game division has been in the red three years running. Sony as a whole chalked up its biggest group operating loss ever. Whether or not that rumored fall PS3 price cut will factor into Sony's plan, Hirai refused to say. Instead, he stated that prices will be decided by "market developments."