13 Apr 2012

Sony to shed 10,000 staff worldwide

6:32 am on 13 April 2012

Sony is to shed 10,000 staff as part of a major reorganisation at the giant electronics company.

The cuts, which represent 6% of the global workforce, will be made over the next 12 months.

They were announced at a news conference by new chief executive Kazuo Hirai.

The reorganisation will cost $US926 million during the current financial year.

On Tuesday, Sony forecast a record annual loss of $US6.4 billion - double its previous estimate.

The BBC reports Sony has been struggling to compete in the television business with South Korea's Samsung and LG, while Apple has challenged it in audio devices and phones.

Sony says it will focus its business on three areas - digital imaging, games consoles and mobile devices.

It hopes the changes will help to generate sales of $US10.5 billion by the financial year ending in March 2015, with a profit margin of 5%.

Sony reported sales of $US7.9 billion in the last financial year.