Sony's Hirai: We could be in 'serious trouble'

Sony president Kazuo Hirai, who took over the role recently, has admitted that the company has tough times ahead, thanks to "one issue after another." Hirai was named the new Sony president and CEO earlier this week, having taken over the role from former president Sir Howard Stringer. He was instrumental in the early marketing success of Sony's then-new PlayStation video game brand in the mid-1990s. However, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Hirai said, "I thought turning around the PlayStation business was going to be the toughest challenge of my career, but I guess not. It's one issue after another. I feel like 'Holy shit, now what?'" With Sony's stock at a low, plus third quarter declines in revenue and a swing to losses year-over-year, Hirai also noted that he needs to make some tough decisions about the future of the company. "We really need to buckle down and be realistic," he explained. "I don't think everybody [working at the company] is on board, but I think people are coming around to the idea that if we don't turn this around, we could be sitting in some serious trouble." He added, "We can't just continue to be a great purveyor of hardware products, even though some people expect us to do that."