ken-kutaragi
Latest
Analysts believe Sony's Kutaragi was squeezed out
It's hard not to imagine industry analysts getting along famously with PlayStation father, Ken Kutaragi. Holding hands, dancing in a circle and spouting outrageous claims at each other, they'd have a jolly good session of prediction, scrutiny and hopscotch. In response to Mr. Kutaragi's recently announced plans to leave the circle, several analysts have expressed belief that his departure is partly motivated by the parent company yelling from the outskirts of the park, insisting that, "You've had your fun, it's time to go." According to a GameDaily BIZ report, the PlayStation 3 may make for a particularly heavy golden hand to shake.Evan Wilson of Pacific Crest Securities tells Bloomberg.com that Kutaragi's retirement "is likely an indication Sony corporate isn't satisfied with the initial success of the PS3." The Washington Post calls it a "face-saving firing," quoting IDC's famous time traveling analyst, Billy Pidgeon, as saying, "Sony had too much hype and not enough delivery." Furthermore, an AG Edwards analyst, Bill Kreher, tells GameDaily BIZ, "The PS3 obviously has had a rough start and I would question whether Kutaragi would still be leaving if the console had been better received by the marketplace."Still, some analysts agree with Sony's official line that Kutaragi had left of his own accord in pursuit of "new challenges beyond the world of PlayStation." Michael Pachter of Wedbush Morgan Securities states that the decision likely had more to do with software and the PSP. "It can't be [Kutaragi's] fault that the cost of the box was so high, and I have a tough time believing he insisted on Blu-ray. They probably just all agreed it was time to move on." He and a few other analysts go on to note that Kaz Hirai will prove to be an effective leader and a better instigator of success in the years to come.
Ken Kutaragi steps down as CEO
The quote unquote Father of the PlayStation is stepping down from his position of CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment. "Kutaragi has said that he has been considering this decision for some time. He stated that, in the six months since the appointment of Kazuo Hirai as President in December, the new generation of management, led by Mr. Hirai, has continued to develop. With the March introduction of PS3 in Europe completing the successful launch of PS3 worldwide, Mr. Kutaragi has identified SCE's Annual Shareholders' meeting in June as the ideal timing to pass on the torch to the new generation of management. Mr. Kutaragi will now apply his extensive technological knowledge and leadership skills to take on new challenges beyond the world of PlayStation. Sony and SCE will continue to seek Mr. Kutaragi's input and ideas from a broad perspective, while continuing to support him as much as possible in the realization of his dreams."Kutaragi will continue to be a senior technology advisor to Sony. Although the man was infamous for his somewhat delusional comments, we know that his replacement, Kaz Hirai, will do just a good of job at keeping the internet entertained.
Ken Kutaragi to retire, go back to space ship
As of June 19th, the man behind the Spider-Man font, behind the PlayStation 3's slick design, behind the massive damage control Sony is still trying to get a hang of will be retiring. Yes, Krazy Ken Kutaragi will be stepping down from his position as CEO at Sony Computer Entertainment. He will be replaced by the less krazy Kaz Hirai -- he doesn't get the capital letter yet.The following are excerpts from a press release from Sony detailing the resignation: "Kutaragi has said that he has been considering this decision for some time. He stated that, in the six months since the appointment of Kazuo Hirai as President in December, the new generation of management, led by Mr. Hirai, has continued to develop...Sony and SCE will continue to seek Mr. Kutaragi's input and ideas from a broad perspective, while continuing to support him as much as possible in the realization of his dreams." He's passing on the torch to Kaz Hirai and the new, fresh, young management team! Good. It's a good thing to know what's best for the company, even at your own expense. We salute him for that. But... what are his dreams? The PS3 Grill?While this is heartbreaking news for those who think Kutaragi was doing a stellar job with the PS3, recall that he was given a promotion recently that consequently took him out of most day-to-day operations of Sony and the PlayStation 3. As a parting farewell to all the shoddy promises given by Kutaragi, as well as a few things to make us giggle, we're sticking some famous quotes from the man, the legend, the mystery: Ken Kutaragi. Goodbye, Krazy Ken. You had a good run, but it's time to step aside. Have a great retirement! "[We want] consumers to think to themselves 'I will work more hours to buy one'. We want people to feel that they want it, irrespective of anything else." "The PS3 will instill discipline in our children and adults alike. Everyone will know discipline." "The PS3 is not a game machine " [Via Joystiq]
Sony's Ken Kutaragi announces plans to retire
In March, The Wall Street Journal said Ken Kutaragi was a "stumbling block" for Sony; now they're reporting that the controversial chairman and group CEO for Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. -- and father of the PlayStation brand -- will be retiring his post effective June 19. Of course, the 57-year-old exec was recently kicked upstairs, removing him from day-to-day operations following what many considered to be a botched strategy for the PlayStation 3. Kaz Hirai, who replaced Ken in December, will be promoted to CEO of SCE. And Kaz, you better start practicing. You've got some large shoes to fill ... four-dimensional shoes that require dual HDMI soles to output 120 footprints a second. But seriously, we'll miss your krazy quotes, Ken!Update -- SCEI statement: "Kutaragi has said that he has been considering this decision for some time. He stated that, in the six months since the appointment of Kazuo Hirai as President in December, the new generation of management, led by Mr. Hirai, has continued to develop. With the March introduction of PS3 in Europe completing the successful launch of PS3 worldwide, Mr. Kutaragi has identified SCE's Annual Shareholders' meeting in June as the ideal timing to pass on the torch to the new generation of management. Mr. Kutaragi will now apply his extensive technological knowledge and leadership skills to take on new challenges beyond the world of PlayStation. Sony and SCE will continue to seek Mr. Kutaragi's input and ideas from a broad perspective, while continuing to support him as much as possible in the realization of his dreams." Read - PlayStation Creator Plans to Retire (WSJ subscription reqd.)Read - Kutaragi to step down as Sony game unit CEO (IDG)
Sony's Ken Kutaragi leaving SCE chairman and CEO spots in June
It wasn't hard to see something like this coming, with Kaz Hirai swiping Ken's President position over Sony Computer Entertainment late last year, but now Sony has gone and made it official: Ken Kutaragi, creator of the PlayStation and all-around good looking guy, will retire from his chairman and CEO posts over Sony Computer Entertainment on June 19th. Kaz will fill the CEO spot, while Ken will maintain "honorary" status as chairman of the group and will hang around with Sony CEO Howard Stringer, acting as senior technology adviser. We only have Sony's word to go on that this is a "retirement," instead of being "relieved" in response to recent troubles in PlayStation land. But any way you slice it, Ken had a good run, sold a few consoles, and can most likely officially wash his hands of that PlayStation Eye 'fro-cam his successor will have the pleasure of pushing. [Warning: subscription required]
Rumor: Namco Bandai hard at work on three... games? [update 1]
Remember Cellius, the subsidiary company formed by Namco Bandai and the head of Ken Kutaragi? You'd be forgiven if your memory is a bit hazy on the matter, since the $824,000 investment had naught to show for its efforts at the time. Today brings a different story, however, along with a slew of scans supposedly escaping from the pages of a recent Famitsu issue. It would be wise to sprinkle the word "supposedly" throughout this entire post, as these images have migrated hands and servers so many times, it's difficult to pinpoint their source or level of authenticity.[Update 1: The caution was justified, it seems. Our Japanese translation slave brings up the following points: These likely aren't scans at all -- they're either mock-ups or leaked page template files. There is no confirmation that these are PS3 games or even games at all! Team Aces is behind the wheel, however, and they recently made Ace Combat 6 an Xbox 360 exclusive... If Cellius is involved, it is not evidenced here. While this new information doesn't rule out the possibility of these being PS3 exclusives anyway (the internets would certainly like to believe so), it would be wiser to take a step back and merely view these as new-gen game concepts. Though the stunning screenshots of Brave Arms, Chain Lim!t and Second Season 01 could represent target renders or similar technical tomfoolery, the abundance of guns, explosions and atmospheric lighting conveys quite a bit of excitement nonetheless. Take in the full scans images after the break.
Sony Sauce for your PS3 BBQ, sir? Only in Japan!
We all had a good laugh at the meat-lovin' ingenuity of the PS3 grill, but Japan is also well up on Sony-related humor. As a response to Sony's "SIXAXIS Emmy," someone at Rendering Ranger (a weird T-shirt brand in Japan) has decided to poke fun at The Machine by creating a condiment called "Actually, the Sauce is Sony." It seems to be just a repackaged version of Japan's Bull-Dog sauces, but the redesign is inspired. Ken Kutaragi's triumphant visage replaces the Bull-Dog logo; there's an "Emmy winner!" badge next to the accurately caps-locked SIXAXIS title; and there's the (world-)famous Sony grill render down below. The knockout joke is completed by the pricing structure of this Sony Sauce: the 20GB version should sell for ¥499 but has been reduced to ¥399 (though in this case, just for the sake of fun; not because of any lack of demand), while the 60GB tonkatsu model is listed as Open Price but sells for ¥599. "Actually, the Sauce is Sony" is on sale in very limited quantities in Japan's March Rabbit and Don Quijote discount stores.If any Western gamers can concoct a more elaborate and well-planned game industry joke, we'll tell the world all about it. Click through for more saucy pics (hee-hee) from Akiba Blog.
Ken Kutaragi to become Chairman of Cellius
BandaiNamco and SCEI today announced that they are forming a new Tokyo-based subsidiary company, Cellius, in a bid to develop fresh content for Sony's Cell Broadband Engine. Cellius will be in the hands of "PlayStation's dad", Ken Kutaragi, who will be appointed as the new company's Chairman. Initial investment from BandaiNamco and SCEI is approximately US$824,000; SCEI will have a 49% stake in Cellius, with BandaiNamco controlling a 51% share. Although there are no plans for Cellius to work directly on PS3 games, the new outfit will be producing "interactive entertainment" and "business contents" when its doors open on March 6. What those terms actually entail, we'll just have to wait and see, but perhaps Ken Kutaragi will now have a fair opportunity to show us what he was talking about at last year's Tokyo Game Show conference. Click through for the Japanese (PDF) press release.
Satoru Iwata: biggest Japanese industry cheese of '06?
The latest issue of Japan's Weekly Famitsu contains gory details of the magazine's annual Japanese industry awards, and it's little surprise that renowned industry savior Satoru Iwata is cited as the figure who made the greatest impact on videogames in 2006. NCL's friendly President (there's a French brand of cheese called Président, you know) received 201 votes to pip Ken Kutaragi, of all people, to the title. What "Big Ken" was even doing in the listings we fail to fathom, but there you have it. And here you have Famitsu's top five Japanese industry cheeses: Satoru Iwata (Nintendo) -- 201 votes Ken Kutaragi (Sony Computer Entertainment) -- 181 votes Hironobu Sakaguchi (Mistwalker) -- 126 votes Shigeru Miyamoto (Nintendo) -- 41 votes Hideo Kojima (Konami) -- 33 votes
Ken Kutaragi sez: I "promise" an AV-centric PS3
This just in from our Tokyo bureau: according to an interview conducted by Japan's Impress, Sony's Ken Kutaragi has gone on record with a "promise" for what he's calling an AV-centric PS3. In other words, audio and video capabilities first, gaming second (if at all), in a device built around the Cell-processor platform. Ken says that the device would certainly be more expensive, reflecting the prices and margins expected on high-end consumer electronic devices such as TVs, Blu-ray personal video recorders, etc. -- not the relatively cheap, but powerful gaming rigs sold at a loss under Sony's Computer Entertainment division. Impress speculates that the device could cost as much as ¥300,000 or about $2,500. The new Sony-branded living room box would, in Ken's (translated) words, "be a standard AV component sized box with a more powerful, power supply unit, anti-shake insulator, twice the main memory, and 2x HDMI to split sound and video output." More Cell-processor devices in the living room? We say bring it, Sony.[Via Engadget Japan]
Kutaragi gets shoved in Sony reshuffling
You can expect to see more from SCEA's chief Kaz Hirai (of Riiidge Racer fame), as he's moved on up on the corporate ladder. He'll be replacing "you-can-experience-4D" Ken Kutargai, who's been criticized by his rivals as being too "arrogant." There's been speculation that the slow sales of PSP, the disastrously delayed PS3 launch, and the loss of potential PS3 exclusives, like Grand Theft Auto IV and Assassin's Creed, are behind this shuffling.Regardless, Kutaragi will remain in Sony's corporate arms as chairman and group CEO. While this theoretically is a promotion, it will certainly free up Kaz and new SCEA chief Jack Tretton from correcting the mistakes of a potentially senile leader. Hey, it worked for Nintendo when they got rid of even-more-insane Yamauchi.[Via Joystiq]
Sony recreates Management Team -- here comes Krazy Kaz!
Our two favorite people, Ken Kutaragi and Kaz Hirai, Krazy Kaz and Ken if I may, have moved up in the world! Maybe not the world as a whole, but the world of Sony. The two men, who have a tough time not making fools of themselves (a few exceptions, but they elude me), have indeed garnered new seats in Sony. Kutaragi, formerly the President and Group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., is now the Chairman and Group CEO. Kaz Hirai was formerly President and CEO of SCE America is now President and COO of SCE Inc. At least he's not in charge of Sony America anymore? Whatever. You can check out other managerial movements if you'd like, but really, it's interesting how people more or less mocked by the public continue to move up in the world.
Oh snap! Kutaragi gets demoted
Bloomberg is reporting that after the lackluster Playstation 3 launch and multiple delays that Ken Kutaragi will step down from overseeing daily operations and is being replaced by Kaz Hirai. Though, Kenny won't be out of the picture entirely, but will take up a new role by overseeing the "overall operations" of the Playstation 3. I'm not all about kicking a guy when they are down or rubbing salt into fresh wounds ... but damn does Sony deserve all this. The complete disregard of their fan base, launching with a sad (reported) 200,000 units and all the lies. Seriously, I don't hate the Playstation 3 community or fanboys at all, I simply hate how Sony treats them. Yup, I just had to vent ... sorry guys, but I'm all about mud-slinging today.
Sony shuffles PlayStation management, Ken on the outs?
We're still waiting for the dust to settle here, but it looks like the "Father of the PlayStation," Ken Kutaragi, has been bumped out of his top spot as President of Sony Computer Entertainment, to be replaced by Kaz Hirai, the President of CEO of SCE America. Ken will now be Chairman and Group CEO, while Kaz while take on the role of President and Group COO, effective December 1st. While Ken will have oversight of the PlayStation in his new roles, it sounds like he's been largely been removed from the day-to-day operations to make way for the talented Kaz to do his thing. Speculation is rampant as to whether this is a "promotion" for Kutaragi, in order for him to think "big picture" for his console prodigy, or a demotion in response to the numerous PS3 launch foibles -- we're guessing the latter. What we do know that SCEA will, for the first time, be helmed by an American: Jack Tretton, who we're sure to be seeing plenty of over the next few years.[Via Joystiq]Read - SCE Press Release [Warning: PDF file]Read - SCEA Press Release
PlayStation 3 = 4,000 yuan (plus airfare)
...surprising Sony's Ken Kutaragi = priceless. Even though the PC is the preferred gaming platform in China, there are still a few Chinese gamers willing to go the extra mile to obtain a shiny new console. Or an extra thousand miles in the case of this adventurous young man and his pursuit of a PlayStation 3. The gung ho gamer somehow managed to circumvent the mob of Japanese fanboys and ended up being first in line at a BIC Camera store on launch day. The reward for his efforts was a hand-off from Kutaragi-san himself. Does this remind anyone else of the Grinch carving and distributing the Who roast beast?While this event is unlikely to ease historical tensions between the two Asian nations, it is reminiscent of a similar scene during the PlayStation Portable launch. On a flight from Narita to Shanghai in January of last year, I sat next to two Chinese teenagers who were on the return leg of a one-day trip to Tokyo. The reason for their visit? To snag a pair of new PSPs that had launched just a few weeks earlier. They played them the entire flight and didn't look up once.[Thanks, DarkMirage]
CE-Oh no he didn't! Part XIII - Kutaragi sez Sony doesn't care about PS3 rivals
When asked the other day whether Sony's rivals will outstrip the PS3, Sony Computer Entertainment president Ken Kutaragi merely replied: "We do not care." Closely echoing the sentiments of David Reeves of Sony Europe, this really explains so much about this product. We just wish we'd known sooner so we hadn't given them as much flack about it -- who knew they weren't playing to win? Strangely enough, Kutaragi fessed up to problems with production in the same interview, saying "Right now, it is an issue, because we can't manufacture enough blue laser diodes for our PlayStation 3s. But we will resolve that." No hurry though, right? It's not like those rivals of yours are going to do something like steal valuable market share in the meantime, or pricing their consoles competitively or anything crazy like that.[Via Joystiq]
Kutaragi says: "We don't care," masses arch a brow
Kutaragi was recently asked whether rival consoles will hinder the success of the PS3 by MCV. Kutaragi, being a man not only of few words but of well-worded words (this was an excellent example, don't deny it!), he responded "We do not care." Yeah! Awesome. But... we do, don't we? Oh yeah, well, Mr. Kutaragi, how about you explain the difficulty of producing Blu-ray drives! "Right now, it is an issue, because we can't manufacture enough blue laser diodes for our PlayStation 3s. But we will resolve that." Good to know. We're counting on you.Another head of Sony, Phil Harrison, was available to discuss launch titles, since Kutaragi wouldn't divulge any info on them. Phil, take it away. "Resistance: Fall of Man and Genji are definite PS3 launch titles ... We're at a fluid time when games are in final QA but not out of final QA. But we're close." Cool beans. So what does this prove? Sony is unmoved by the competition, have told us (not promised!) that they will resolve the diode issue, and have told us (not promised, though it surely sounds like one) two launch titles fo' sho'. Sounds good, eh?
The latest PS3 developments, condensed
With next-gen console news being released at such a fast and furious pace these days, it's starting to feel a little bit like Joystiq around here, so instead of reporting and analyzing every little snippet of new information in separate posts, we've rounded up the latest and greatest PS3 revelations into one tight bit of prose. Since pricing is such an important issue to most consumers, we'll start there -- but unfortunately, the news ain't good. You probably already heard that those lucky gamers in Japan will be able to pick up their 20GB boxes for the equivalent of $428, but despite all the hoping and praying you've been doing, Kaz Hirai has reaffirmed that the recent price cuts apply to Japan only -- though he threw the rest of the world something of a bone when he also announced that everyone will be getting an HDMI port on his/her low-end system. Speaking of high prices, Impress is citing "multiple sources" in predicting that most Japanese PS3 games will cost in the neighborhood of ¥8,800 to ¥9,800, which is between $75 and $85 here in America -- ouch, that's like a whole month's allowance for us, and well above the going rate for 360 games. As long as we're dwelling on the negatives, we should also mention that not only will HDMI cables be absent from the box, both Hirai and Ken Kutaragi are leaning away from even including component action with either package. Now on to the good stuff (sorry, there's not much). First of all, it's been confirmed that all PS3 games will indeed ship region-free (though it's up to the developers to code in multilingual support, and Blu-ray movies will remain region-locked) and secondly, the inclusion of Dolby Digital and Dolby TrueHD (7.1 channels) is a done deal. Finally, and perhaps least importantly after all these downers, is the fact that the Wii-inspired, rumble-free controller has officially been dubbed "SIXAXIS" -- though without the shakin' action, we imagine that many of you could care less what they chose to call it. Anyway, that's all for now from the exciting PS3 frontier, but keep your broswer tuned to this channel, as we'll have just a little more Sony-related amusement for you later today.Read- No price drop [Via Gamesindustry.biz]Read- Japanese game speculation [Via IGN]Read- Region-free, no component [Via PS3 Fanboy]Read- SIXAXISRead- Dolby
The three heads of Sony speak -- region free PS3!
Phil Harrison... Kaz Hirai... Ken Kutaragi... no, they do not comprise the three heads of the mythical Cerberus, but they do comprise the three heads of a real-life corporation that rivals such mythical beasts: Sony. Game|Life got to interview them all in one night and a couple of interesting tidbits came out. Here they are: Phil Harrison believes there's no North American price drop because the $599 is a "magic price point". Basically, it's the price people will buy at that gives Sony the greatest marginal profit (or if manufacturing costs are still more than the price, the lowest marginal loss). The Playstation 3 is region free for games, but not movies. So you can grab a PS3 from Japan if you really, really want, but you'll have trouble playing local movies. This is also good news for import junkies, especially among fighting game fanatics (less translation to deal with). Oh, this also includes downloadable games. Kaz Hirai and Ken Kutaragi both leaned towards "no" as to the inclusion of component cables in the box. Alone, each point is kind of "meh", but add them together and you've got a bevy of PS3 common knowledge. It's surprising how these more common points are overlooked, so while many may have heard these, there will be some who were wondering about these and, well, now they know.[FYI: if the link to Game|Life doesn't work, just hit refresh. That worked for me!]
TGS: Sony's snoozer, judge for yourself
Apparently our transcription, with requisite PictoChat commentary, didn't convince everyone that Ken Kutaragi's keynote, titled "PS3 Creating Next Generation of Computer Entertainment," was a total snoozefest. So we followed up with an editorial explaining why, yet some remained unconvinced. So, in an attempt to remove ourselves from this equation, we present the translated audio from the event (.mp3) for your listening pleasure.* If you manage to make it through the whole thing, what do you think? What else, besides Killzone 2, was missing? Where was the PSP?*We'd love to upload a cleaner sound file if any audio-inclined reader wants to clean it up.See also:Sony's trainwreck of a keynoteBlogging Ken Kutaragi's PS3 keynote
