A Welshman in Japan.

Sony Corporation's current management team proposed the creation of a new management structure designed to expand upon its core strengths as a global electronics, entertainment and technology company. The proposal was approved at the Board of Directors' Meeting held today.
Effective June 22, subject to approval at Sony Corporation's Ordinary General Shareholder's Meeting that day, the following new management team will lead the company:

1) Sir Howard Stringer (currently Chairman & CEO Sony Corporation of America, Corporate Executive Officer, Vice Chairman and COO Sony Entertainment Business Group) will assume the position of Chairman, Group CEO and Representative Corporate Executive Officer, Sony Corporation. Sir Howard will run Sony's overall group business operations on a global basis from headquarters in both New York and Tokyo. In this new position, he will also continue in his role as the head of the Entertainment Business Group and head of Sony Corporation of America.

2) Dr. Ryoji Chubachi (currently Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Deputy President and COO of MSNC and EMCS) will assume the position of Representative Corporate Executive Officer, President of Sony Corporation and CEO of the Electronics Business Group of the company. In this new position, Dr. Chubachi will have overall responsibility for Sony's electronics businesses worldwide.

3) Mr. Katsumi Ihara (currently Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Deputy President and Group CFO) will assume the role of Representative Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Deputy President and Group CFO, Sony Corporation. Mr. Ihara will oversee financial matters and support Sir Howard and Dr. Chubachi with respect to overall corporate strategy and resource allocation.

The current management team led by Mr. Nobuyuki Idei, Representative Corporate Executive Officer, Chairman and Group CEO has implemented an effective reallocation of group-wide resources and promotion of cross-border alliances within the Sony Group. This has resulted in the significant strengthening of the entertainment content businesses, the solidifying of the mobile phone business, the development of the next generation semiconductor chip, and the integration and expansion of the financial services business. As a result, Sony is now poised to move forward with its global entertainment, electronics and technology strategy.

This is a pivotal year for Sony Corporation, and this new structure will enable the company to streamline its operation, and provide a more cohesive focus for operating its businesses around the world in a proactive and strategic manner.
(Comments from Sir Howard Stringer)
"I am delighted to be joining Dr. Chubachi, Mr. Ihara and the extremely talented global management team to lead Sony Corporation. Sony has an unparalleled legacy of boldness, innovation and leadership around the world. Together we look forward to joining our twin pillars of engineering and technology with our commanding presence in entertainment and content creation to deliver the most advanced devices and forms of entertainment to the consumer. I am grateful to Mr. Idei and to Mr. Ando for the confidence they have shown in me, and the Sony Board of Directors for their support, and to the many talented executives throughout this organization who have shown their desire to lead and to innovate. We have clearly demonstrated in our US operations that we can achieve significant cross-company efficiencies, and at the same time deliver both extraordinary quality and record returns. I believe the entire global organization is hungry to make this same transition, and all of us in senior management are committed to achieving that goal." Prior to joining Sony, Mr. Stringer had a distinguished 30-year career as a journalist, producer and executive at CBS Inc. As President of CBS from 1988 to 1995, he was responsible for all the broadcast activities of the company including entertainment, news, sports, radio and television stations. Under his leadership, the CBS Television Network became the first network to rise from last to first place in one season. In 1993, in what became one of the most chronicled coups in television history, Mr. Stringer convinced David Letterman to bring his critically acclaimed late night show to CBS.

From 1986 to 1988, Mr. Stringer served as President of CBS News, where he developed several new programs including the award-winning 48 HOURS, which continues as a primetime hit to this day. Prior to that, during his tenure as executive producer of the CBS EVENING NEWS with Dan Rather from 1981 to 1984, that program became the dominant network evening newscast of its day. From 1976 to 1981, while Mr. Stringer was executive producer of the CBS REPORTS documentary unit, it won virtually every major honor, including 31 Emmys, four Peabody Awards, three Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards, three Christopher Awards, three Overseas Press Club Awards, an ABA Silver Gavel and a Robert F. Kennedy Grand Prize. Among his award-winning programs are THE ROCKEFELLERS, THE PALESTINIANS, A TALE OF TWO IRELANDS, THE DEFENSE OF THE UNITED STATES, THE BOAT PEOPLE, THE BOSTON GOES TO CHINA, THE FIRE NEXT DOOR, and THE CIA'S SECRET ARMY. Mr. Stringer earned nine individual Emmys as a writer, director and producer from 1974 to 1976.

After leaving CBS Inc., Mr. Stringer was Chairman and CEO of TELE-TV, the media and technology company formed by Bell Atlantic, NYNEX and Pacific Telesis, three of the largest telephone companies in the United States, from February 1995 to April 1997.

Mr. Stringer is the recipient of numerous media and philanthropic awards. Phoenix House, the nation’s leading non-profit substance abuse services organization, presented him with its Public Service Award in April 2002. He has also been honored by Literacy Partners, Teach for America, and the New York Hall of Science. The Center for Communication presented Mr. Stringer with its highest award in November 2000. In May 1999, he was honored with the UJA-Federation of New York's Steven J. Ross Humanitarian Award and in November 1999, he was inducted into the Royal Television Society's Welsh Hall of Fame. In 1996 he was awarded the First Amendment Leadership Award by the Radio & Television News Directors Foundation in Washington, D.C., and was inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame. In 1994, Mr. Stringer received the International Radio and Television Society's Foundation Award, and was honored for his "uncommon vision" in the media industry by the American Museum of the Moving Image.

Mr. Stringer serves as Chairman of the American Film Institute Board of Trustees and is on the Board of Trustees of the Museum of Television and Radio. He is a board member of InterContinental Hotels Group, The New York/Presbyterian Hospital, The American Theatre Wing, the American Friends of the British Museum, and the Corporate Leadership Committee of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. He has honorary Fellowships from Merton College, Oxford, and the Welsh College of Music and Drama. In 2003, Mr. Stringer received an Honorary Doctorate from the London Institute.

A native of Cardiff, Wales, Sir Howard received the title of Knight Bachelor in the New Year Honours list of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on December 31, 1999. He holds a B.A. and an M.A. in modern history from Oxford University. He is a recipient of the U.S. Army Commendation Medal for meritorious achievement for service in Vietnam (1965-67). He became a U.S. citizen in 1985 and is married to Dr. Jennifer A.K. Patterson, a dermatologist. They have two children, David Ridley and Harriet Kinmond.