Jim Ryan, the Chief Executive of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) is leaving the company after 30 years. Ryan joined the company in 1994 just before the first PlayStation was released in December of the same year. In 2019, he was made the boss of the PlayStation video game unit.
“I will leave having been privileged to work on products that have touched millions of lives across the world; PlayStation will always be part of my life, and I feel more optimistic than ever about the future of SIE” said Mr. Ryan.
Having overseen the great success of PS 5 since its launch in 2020, he will leave Sony in March 2024. It is expected Hiroki Totoki Sony’s Chief Operating Officer will take over on an interim basis. Totoki will continue in his current roles as the company searches for a successor.
Jim Ryan Success and Controversies
PS 5 console has sold over 40 million units across the globe. The leadership of Mr. Ryan has seen the company sales beat that of Microsoft’s Xbox console. During his tenure, first-party games such as Horizon Forbidden West and God of War Ragnarök were launched. These games become instants hits among gamers.
“That extraordinary achievement made by the entire SIE team has been steadily built on and PlayStation 5 is on track to become SIE’s most successful console yet.” said Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida.
Jim Ryan drew some criticism when he labelled Xbox Game Pass “destructive” for the industry. Taking the fight again to Microsoft, Ryan was a critic of Microsoft’s agreement to acquire Activision Blizzard Inc. for $69 billion. He actively lobbied against the proposed acquisition with federal regulators.
In 2022, Ryan drew the ire of Sony employees by sending a memo that contained comments about the US Supreme Court’s decision on abortion access. In the same memo there were five paragraphs about his two cats’ first birthday.
