In a bid to increase consumer electronics sales in the U.S., Sony replaced Sony Electronics (SEL) President Phil Molyneux with Michael Fasulo, who has been with the company since 1984, The Wall Street Journal reports. Molyneux, also the current COO of SEL, will become a non-executive Chairman. Joining Fasulo, who’s currently the Executive Vice President of the company in charge of sales and retail execution for the region, will be Toshifumi Okuda who will become the Deputy President on January 1, 2014 when the changes are scheduled to occur.
Sony’s CEO Kaz Hirai hopes that the change in leadership will be beneficial for the company.
“Mike and Okuda-san’s strong backgrounds in sales and marketing will serve them well as SEL puts renewed focus on customer relations to drive expansion of our business in the United States,” the CEO said. “The industry continues to be challenged by economic conditions in the US as it is elsewhere in the world, but I am confident that Mike and Okuda-san will build on the progress achieved by Phil and make SEL’s future even brighter than its illustrious past.”
The company clearly looks to improve sales in the region, as the U.S. is one of its most important markets. Sony has recently slashed its profit forecast by 40%, for the year, cutting targets for several products including TVs, PCs, digital cameras and video cameras. Sony also sells smartphones and the already popular new PlayStation 4 console in the region, as well as digital content.
