Just like a meteor swishing by Earth and being missed by our giant telescopes, the gaming industry did not expect that Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) and PlayStation US topman Jack Tretton will be parting ways soon.
SCEA has announced that Tretton will be stepping down from his post as president and chief executive officer of the company at the end of the month as the man who provides direction for the company's popular gaming console. Tretton has been with the firm since 1995 and has played a crucial role in directing the PlayStation product to success in the United States. After proving his worth with the release of PlayStation and PS2, the company promoted Tretton to the top position of the SCEA.
"This is a result of a mutual agreement between Mr. Tretton and SCEA not to renew their contractual relationship," SCEA said in a statement. Tretton has led the company in launching all PlayStation products from the first generation PlayStation to the PS4 and other products of the brand such as the PlayStation Portable and Vita.
The move was not foreseen by those in the gaming console industry especially during a time when the sales numbers of the PlayStation 4 went beyond the brand's expectations. The game console punched the daylights out its Xbox One rival since it launched in November. Being $100 cheaper against the Microsoft rival helped as latest reports reveal that it has gone beyond six million units sold plus roughly 14 million game titles bought by customers as of March 2, while Xbox One is struggling to hit the 5 million mark.
"Working at SCEA for the past 19 years has been the most rewarding experience of my career. Although I will deeply miss the talented team at SCEA and the passion demonstrated every day by our fans, I'm very excited about starting the next chapter of my career," said Tretton. "I want to thank the employees, partners and customers for their tireless commitment to the PlayStation brand and, of course, to our fans who have pushed us to new heights of innovation and entertainment over the past two decades. I leave PlayStation in a position of considerable strength and the future will only get brighter for PlayStation Nation."
Chief operating officer and executive vice president of Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI) Shawn Layden will take over the responsibilities of Tretton.
Layden has been working with the PlayStation platform for 15 years and is one of the founding members of SNEI. He was also past president of Sony Computer Entertainment Japan and worked for several years at the Worldwide Studios of SCE in London where he helmed software development.
This year the company is expected to introduce a cloud TV service on PlayStation and a games download service called PlayStation Now this year.
