Jack Tretton is going to step down as Sony computer entertainment CEO as of March 31, Sony has declared.
Tretton’s departure comes up as a “result of a mutual agreement between the CEO and SCEA of not renewing their contractual relationship”, according to the company’s official press release. He is going to be replaced by the current Executive VP and COO of Sony Network entertainment International, Shawn Layden (who has been with the company since last 15 years), effective April 1. Tretton sounded a bit emotional of his departure from the company he had been with since a very long time. He said, “Working at SCEA for the past 19 years has been the foremost rewarding experience of my career. Although I am going to deeply miss the proficient team at SCEA and the passion demonstrated every day by our fans, I am very excited about beginning the next chapter of my career. I would like to impart the workers, partners and customers for their tireless commitment to the PlayStation brand and, of course, to our fans who have pushed USA to new heights of innovation and entertainment over the past 20 years. I leave PlayStation in a position of appreciable strength and the future will solely get brighter for PlayStation Nation.”
Tretton joined Sony in 1995 after he became one of the founding executives of the firm’s PlayStation division. He has led Sony Computer Entertainment’s American division through five hardware launches, including the four home consoles, PSP and Vita, as well as the launch of the PlayStation Network service. He has also long been a well distinguished face of PlayStation. He has made regular appearances on stage at major conferences and has been an important part of the team at the massively spectated E3 press briefings as well.