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17
“As president and CEO of Sony Mobile, my mission is to lead the
creation of smartphones and tablets that inspire and delight us-
ers by incorporating products, user experiences and technology
that only Sony can provide, such as signature applications for
easy access to Sony’s online network services and intuitive ‘one-
touch’ connection with other devices.
　Sony Mobile’s goal is to provide innovative mobile products
that bring together the best of Sony. Xperia™ Z and Xperia™
Tablet Z have given us a glimpse of the potential of Sony’s new
mobile business.”
Kunimasa Suzuki
EVP, Corporate Executive Officer, Sony Corporation
Officer in charge of PC business, Mobile Business, UX,
Product Strategy and Creative Platform, Sony Corporation
President & CEO, Sony Mobile Communications
* On February 15, 2012, Sony acquired Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson’s 50%
equity interest in Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB, which changed
its corporate name to Sony Mobile Communications AB upon becoming a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony.
In February 2012, Sony consolidated Sony Mobile Com-
munications AB* (“Sony Mobile”), manufacturer of Xperia™
smartphones, into a wholly-owned subsidiary, with the aim
of combining Sony’s innovative technologies, services, con-
tent and other assets with Sony Mobile’s extensive capabili-
ties in the mobile communications sphere and unleashing
the power of Sony in the mobile business. Two months lat-
er, Sony’s management unveiled “One Sony,” an integrated
management approach that seeks to draw on the strengths
of the entire Sony Group and accelerate decision making to
propel growth and create new value.
　Sony Mobile has since taken additional, decisive steps
to reinforce convergence of its mobile business. One such
step was to revamp Sony Mobile’s global development
structure, which encompasses bases in Japan, Sweden and
China. Another was to shift parts of Sony Mobile’s global
corporate headquarters functions from Sweden to Japan. In
addition to enhancing Sony Mobile’s operational capabili-
ties, including time to market and supply chain manage-
ment, these moves sought to accelerate integration with
the wider Sony Group and reinforce Sony Mobile’s develop-
ment prowess through steps such as placing its Android™-
based smartphones and tablets under the same develop-
ment platform. These moves were also in line with Sony
Mobile’s basic strategy, which focuses on creating and
delivering winning products, building sales and marketing
success, and ensuring operational excellence in execution.
　Such eorts quickly yielded exciting results in the form of
two groundbreaking products. In January 2013, Sony Mo-
bile unveiled its new flagship smartphone Xperia™ Z at the
International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The
following month, Sony Mobile announced the global avail-
ability of the Xperia™ Tablet Z, and exhibited the Xperia™
Z and the Xperia™ Tablet Z at Mobile World Congress, the
world’s foremost mobile industry trade show, in Barcelona.
The Xperia™ Z was released in February, first in Japan and
then in more than 60 other key markets. The Xperia™ Tab-
let Z soon followed. The response to both products has
been outstanding.
A Promising Start