Sony Mobile to Withdraw From India, Other Markets in Bid to Turn Business Profitable

Sony at its corporate strategy meeting for the fiscal year 2019 on Tuesday detailed its smartphone business transformation. During the meeting in Tokyo, the company revealed that it presently considers Japan, Europe, Taiwan, and Hong Kong as the "focus regions" for its smartphone business. It also showcased the regions from where it will be withdrawing its smartphone business, including India. Back in March, the Japanese company announced the closure of its smartphone plant in Beijing and shifted the production to Thailand. The company also has plans to cut its operational costs by 50 percent.

The presentation slide highlighting Sony's smartphone business transformation during the strategy meeting confirms Japan, Europe, Taiwan, and Hong Kong as the focus regions for the company. However, it does state that there are many global markets, including Africa, Australia, Canada, India, Mexico, and the Middle East, that have been considered as the "non focus" and "defocused regions" with respect to the sales and marketing of Sony phones. It will be withdrawing from these markets.

Sony highlights its non focus, defocused, and focus markets in a presentation slide

Alongside providing the detail on the regional basis, Sony during its meeting mentioned that it is aimed to reduce the operational cost by 50 percent and overall cost by 57 percent in the fiscal year 2020 from the fiscal year 2017. This is aimed to help make the smartphone business profitable in the long run.

A recent report claimed that Sony is set to cut its mobile division workforce by half by 2020. This could result in roughly 2,000 employees either losing their jobs or getting moved to a new business division at the company.

The streamlining of the costs from the smartphone business was also suggested through the recent move of closing down the smartphone plant in Beijing. As a result of the closure, Sony shifted the production to its plant in Thailand. This was again aimed at reducing costs and turn the smartphone business profitable.