Sony
CEO praises employees, partners for standing up to
hackers
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[January 06, 2015]
By Ritsuko Ando
LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Sony Corp Chief
Executive Officer Kazuo Hirai on Monday praised employees and partners
of the company's Hollywood movie studio for standing up to "extortionist
efforts" of hackers who attacked Sony Pictures Entertainment.
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In his first public comments on the massive cyberattack, which the
U.S. government has blamed on North Korea, Hirai said current and
former employees of the studio were "the victims of one of the most
vicious and malicious cyberattacks we have known in recent history."
The attack came as the company prepared to release "The Interview",
a comedy about a fictional plot to assassinate North Korea's leader
Kim Jong Un. It debilitated Sony Pictures' computer network in
November and led to the online leaks of unreleased movies and
embarrassing emails.
"Freedom of speech and freedom of expression are... lifelines of
Sony and our entertainment business," Hirai said during a
presentation at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. He also
thanked those who had seen the movie.
He did not take questions from reporters.
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Sony initially canceled the release of "The Interview" after hackers
threatened theaters. Following criticism from U.S. President Barack
Obama and Hollywood celebrities, it released the film, but although
cinemas and pay TV services are showing it, Sony has yet to recoup
the up to $88 million it spent on marketing and production.
In addition to the cyberattack, Sony has also been grappling with
weak sales at its consumer electronics division, particularly
smartphones, and is heading for its fifth net loss in six years.
Sales of its PlayStation 4, however, have been a bright spot: Sony
said sales of the video game consoles exceeded 18.5 million units as
of Jan. 4, up from 13.5 million at the end of October, showing
strong holiday demand.
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Analysts said the sales figures were better than expected -
Macquarie Research analyst Damian Thong had forecast sales of around
17.5 million. The PS4's performance was especially strong as
Microsoft's rival console, the XBox One, was being sold at big
discounts in November.
At CES, Sony showcased a new line-up of high definition TVs and said
it would start selling a stainless steel version of its wearable
SmartWatch 3 from February. The company did not make major
announcements on its Xperia smartphones, which have been lagging
Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd in sales and are facing
increasing pressure from Chinese rivals including Xiaomi.
(Additional reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and
Miral Fahmy)
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