Sony CEO and 39 other executives give up bonuses in ‘unprecedented’ gesture

The decision comes as the maker of PlayStation consoles eyes a profit after four years in the red. But its troubled electronics unit may remain mired in losses despite Hirai’s bid to drag it back to profitability.

[majiebeast]

EA could learn from this gesture.

[dedicatedtogamers]

It must be a Japanese thing. Y'know, honor in business and all that or something. Nintendo did it when the 3DS utterly failed to sell (just prior to the 3DS price cut). And now Sony is doing it.

[kreate]

what about americans?

[Ken22]

@Kreat they take your ass to court and sue you xD. Sad but true.

@jcnba Just like your comment...

[dedicatedtogamers]

I didn't mean it as an insult. I'm just pointing out that it must be a Japanese thing, since I've never seen an American videogame company do something like this, and yet we have two of the biggest gaming companies - Sony and Nintendo - each doing it within an 18 month time frame.

[creeping judas]

@ Kreate, as you may have known, when the American economy was collapsing and banks were failing, they were still giving bonuses to the executives. American corporate culture is such that if you show up at work, you deserve a bonus. This does also trickle down to a lot of North American business. In my position as bank manager if I don't produce the numbers, I don't get a bonus. And that is the way it should be from the bottom all the way to the top.

I commend Sony Corporations stand on not taking bonuses this year.

[Soldierone]

@Kreate,

Lol, our business' will just take a bigger bonus and run just before the company collapses. That, or they will send all the jobs to China so their paychecks get bigger, then cry when all the jobless people don't buy their crappy made products.

[ravinash]

Sony has had to make a lot of cut backs and a lot of people have lost their jobs because of that.
the execs are doing the right thing by not accepting the bonus as it wouldn't really be fair if they did after making so many others are out of work.

Also it shows that they care about the company and sends a good image out to all those working under them.

Mind you, you do have to remember that these guys do get paid well even without the bonus, so I think they will be OK.

[Software_Lover]

During the bad parts of the recession, Chrysler CEO gave up salary for a year.

[nukeitall]

@Kreate:

"as you may have known, when the American economy was collapsing and banks were failing, they were still giving bonuses to the executives. American corporate culture is such that if you show up at work, you deserve a bonus."

BS!

That mantra of "if you show up for work, you deserve pay" for the most part exist in low pay jobs. Others that work hard, tend to be extremely motivated and driven by passion.

There is a reason why the US is the one country in the world that rapidly seizes market share in whatever industry there is money to be made.

Take a look at the games industry!

The fact that CEO and high ranking officials give up their bonuses, is ridiculous. They shouldn't have received it in the first place! Sony has been on a downward trend for the past 20 years or something.

Apple former CEO, Steve Jobs took $1 salary! All his income was bonuses tied to the company's performance!

"Must be an American" thing then, eh? The rest of the world is greedy?

Point being, look at things with an objective eye. Don't be fooled, these executives didn't deserve a bonus.

If they demand it, I would fire them.

@creeping judas

"@ Kreate, as you may have known, when the American economy was collapsing and banks were failing, they were still giving bonuses to the executives."

That is because these companies have scoundrel executives that keep re-appearing in our corrupt government.

These people magically downvote proposal for the better good, and then retire from the government post. Then almost always get a consulting job or something similar for lots of money. Then sometime later they re-appear in the government again, creating more mishap.

We the American people should really demand these people jailed, and get some people that want changes in.

Right now it is just a corrupt mess where rampant greed can fester.

Keep in mind that I'm not saying greed is bad, but it can be.

[Menech]

Lets hope it's enough to remove then from the red, Sony really need to start turning a profit soon. They seem to be managing in the console business, but most other sectors are in ruin.

[grimmweisse]

They seem to be on the right track. Sony has doubled its full-year profit forecasts up from $201 million to $403 million. Seems that their playstation and financial arms are doing the serious business.

[ZoyosJD]

I know 535 people that need to take a pay cut more than EA CEOs. *cough*congress*cough*

[MiloGarret]

US congressmen probably earn 1/10 of what EA CEO's earn. At the very least they earn a lot less, and don't get any bonuses.

[ZoyosJD]

@MiloGarret I know someone who was a lobbyist. Needless to say just being around that group is a lavish lifestyle.

"The most recent pay adjustment for Members of Congress was in January 2009. Since then, the
compensation for most Senators, Representatives, Delegates, and the Resident Commissioner
from Puerto Rico has been $174,000."

"Members are allowed to deduct, for income tax purposes, living expenses up to $3,000 per
annum, while away from their congressional districts or home states."

"Permissible “outside earned income” for Representatives and Senators is limited to 15% of the annual rate of basic pay for level II of the Executive Schedule."

"The Members’ Representational Allowance (MRA) is available to support Representatives in
their official and representational duties."

"The MRA is funded in the House “Salaries and Expenses” account in the annual legislative
branch appropriations bills. This account has decreased in recent years, from $660.0 million in FY2010, to $573.9 million in FY2012. Additionally, the Statement of Disbursements of the House states that the The 2012 allowances range from $1,270,129 to $1,564,613, with an average of $1,353,205."

"The MRA may be used for official expenses including, for example, staff, travel, mail, office equipment, district office rental, stationery, and other office supplies."

"The SOPOEA is funded within the “Contingent Expenses of the Senate,” account in the annual
legislative branch appropriations bills. The list of total office allowances contained in the Senate report on its version of the FY2013 legislative branch appropriations bill (S.Rept. 112-197) shows a range of $2,960,716 to $4,685,632, depending on the state.25 The average allowance is $3,209,103."

http://library.clerk.house....

That is only the "official" part.

[MiloGarret]

Whether or not it is lavish depends wholly of which interests you represent, environmental or HR lobbyists for instance don't usually have the same resources as others. I should know, I've been one.

The official part is the only part. However, they do often earn other incomes by sitting in different boards or the like of other organisations. That has nothing to do with their salary as congressmen though. Bribes and so on of course occur, as well as favours, but not in the extent that the public thinks.

[UnwanteDreamz]

@Milo

Any idea how often they are in session? 138 to 190 days in a year. I can't believe you would defend congress. 128,000$ to do nothing but secure their future positions on a bank board. Half Goldman Sachs board members are ex politicians.

[KwietStorm_BLM]

A LOT of company execs around the globe could do something like this and benefit the whole. Its really redundant to keep dragging EA through the mud.

[shutUpAndTakeMyMoney]

BUT ea IS AMERICAN. SO NO THEY WON'T DO IT.

[TooTall19]

Why should they? Is EA reporting losses?

[showtimefolks]

i am hopeful that under Kaz's leadership sony can get back to what it use to be or atleast make profit on yearly bases

Playstation brand is not the one loosing money like some comments suggesting on this article

but more companies could have learned something from this, THQ CEO gave a discount but still got bonus when his company was about to go out of business

KAZ cares about sony along with other leaders within the company

[Psn800]

Well done Sony !

[BattleTorn]

Commenters here are paising Sony, as if they did this for any other reason than being in the red for years.

This isn't a gesture. It's a survival tactic

[zeddy]

i dont get bonuses anyway. surely the only incentive you need to do good in your job is your salary. why dont they just pay them bonuses at the end of the month instead of a fixed salary.

[LogicStomper]

If your incentive for doing good in your job is the salary, you have a job for all the wrong reasons.

Money is just a bonus to the job. People should find jobs which they actually enjoy doing, not the ones that give them more money.

You try to live a happy life, so you would want a job that actually makes you happy. Having an unenjoyable job to get money is just a waste of life, you're doing what you don't enjoy in hopes of getting something you do.

So the incentive for doing good in your job shouldn't be the salary, it should be the drive from your passion for the work.

[andibandit]

Let me just fix this story........
Sony slashes bonuses but manage to put a positive spin on it.

[Bobby Kotex]

Doing things like this is more culturally aligned with Japanese executives than American. An American CEO would never do anything like this.

[Gh05t]

"An American CEO would never do anything like this."

Way to make one of the most ignorant statements around...

US Airways CEO Douglas Parker
Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis
AFLAC CEO Dan Amos turned down a golden parachute

Im not saying they all do I just think its a little ignorant to assume that some people have pride and realize that if you lead a company to unprofitably you don't deserve a bonus (regardless of local).

Also many CEO take pay cuts as well some to the tune of 25% which I am sure far outweighs the measly bonus they took and lasts longer than a one time bonus refusal.

i.e.

"McGee’s total compensation for 2011 declined 25 percent to $7.94 million, from $10.6 million in 2010, Hartford, based in the Connecticut city of the same name, said today in a regulatory filing. McGee’s bonus for 2010 was $1.76 million." - Bloomberg website

And he turned down that 1.76 million bonus.

What about the last 3 years SONY was not profitable did they take the bonuses?

[metalgEer]

It's funny how people argue about Kaz's decision to give up his bonus. This guy is a millionaire so even if he gives up his bonus this year it wouldn't affect his life style by a bit. Secondly, CEO's of giant companies such as Sony are not only offered cash bonuses but incentives such as shares and other sort of asset's from the company. So if the company turns a profit, they'll earn dividends on their shares. Probably he gets double of what he gave this year next year in entitilements and bonuses.

[Downtown boogey]

Why EA? HOW ABOUT ACTIVISION FFS!!??

[TheLyonKing]

But then you think how much are these execs on a bonus is probably nothing to them.

[kenshiro100]

I agree. In fact, every company should learn from this. I hope that Sony gets back on their feet. Any company going through this crap-it's an uphill battle for them.

[Syntax-Error]

It's simple mathematics. I give up my $1M bonus this 1 year for 5 more years of employment at $350K a year.

[Godmars290]

Considering what CEOs salaries have become generally especially when a company's in trouble this is surprising.

Hostess would still be around and Walmat would be better regarded if their execs weren't so greedy.

[OC_MurphysLaw]

I do often wonder how the execs at some of the struggling companies are making "bonuses" when their company books show the comapany is going down the tubes. Seriously, what kind of world do we live in where we reward leaders of companies for failure?

[creeping judas]

I think there are three executives from failing companies that disagree with your comment, and feel that they still deserve their bonuses.

[OC_MurphysLaw]

To be clear, I am talking in general terms in reference to Godmars290's comment.

@creeping judas I have no doubt that almost every executive in the world feels they deserve their bonuses. But if your company or division is failing...I just don't see how anyone should be getting bonuses. Again, not being company specific here... Bonuses should be based on success nothing more, nothing less.

[Bobby Kotex]

The worst was during the beginning of the economic recession in the late 2000s. Execs were giving themselves ridiculous bonuses while their companies were losing tons of money.

[Minato-Namikaze]

I thought the playstation division has been making a profit, but because they are apart of the tv divsion (electronics?) it doesn't seem like it makes a profit.

Edit: Nevermind i read the title wrong.

[kremit-21]

Hostess is making a comeback. Minus the unions who refused to cooperate as well. But im sure the unions will be back at Hostess eventually.

[Godmars290]

The unions were by the old company. Had agree to several pay cuts just to keep working only to be asked to take more, meanwhile the execs gave themselves raises.

[Animal Mutha 76]

This to me speaks volumes as the to state of the business and the perceived value of those who are running it.

[MaideninBlack]

Saw this story earlier today on a JP blog. Glad someone finally translated it.

[OSIRUSSS]

This sounds like an awesome Idea for a game!

[danny818]

Sony is really changing for the better. I really hope they win next gen. I'll support them as much as i can :)

[gedden7]

Wow but does that mean Sony in that bad of shape financially???

[Tetsujin]

I'm assuming it's more of a "here's extra $ towards other projects" or "you deserve a bonus for putting in time and effort" rather than Bobby Kotick who just brags about what he makes without putting anything back in the company itself.

What sickens me is there's so many conspiracy a-holes instead of actually looking at the picture of "maybe there is people out there who care enough about their employees and/or customers to sacrifice that expensive house to keep people." If I made that kind of money I'd put some of it back in the company to keep it going instead of spending it foolishly. There's a reason Kaz got promoted, and it's not because he's greedy...

[caseh]

Certain divisions yes, their TV div for example has been bleeding money for years.

I wouldn't be too concerned though, this gesture shows the big cheeses are more concerned about the business as a whole rather than buffering their bank balances.

[grimmweisse]

Sony posted their financial earning recently. Seems to be on the upside. But they still need to sort out their struggling divisions. Mostly their finance and playstation arms are doing well.

[ALLWRONG]

yes

[PigPen]

It means what ever comes first to your mind.

[nevin1]

If they play their cards right, they can get those bonuses again.

[Arai]

It means they are atoning for the mistake that is Howard Stringer as well for the mistakes he made and cost the company.

If anything he should be the honorable one and give up his bonuses.

[joeorc]

"It means they are atoning for the mistake that is Howard Stringer as well for the mistakes he made and cost the company."

for many that keep the blame game going against stringer. A) he is still @ Sony and is still on the board of directors. and B)

Last year Sony’s seven top executives, including Mr Hirai and Mr Stringer, gave up bonuses and accepted cuts to their base pay to take responsibility for what had been a record net loss the previous year, of Y457bn. Senior executives also relinquished some of their compensation in 2011.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5...

in other words now 3 years in a row now kaz an sir H. stringer among now others are not taking any bonus until the restructure and the electronic's part of their loss's are fixed.

[BLow]

All companies should do this. I remember how we bailed out companies here and people were still getting bonuses even though the company was struggling. It's bullshit and kudos for Sony for doing this. Why should you be rewarded for poor performance?

[jacksons98]

I think it's pretty incredible because Hirai has turned Sony around. He actually deserves the bonus.

[Godz Kastro]

I respect that.

[Godz Kastro]

Its crazy how you are trying to make MS out to be some kind of money hoarding devil when Bill Gates gave up 95% of his wealth to charity which makes that millions and millions more than any of you combined have ever done for the sick and poor.

Anything to try to get a laugh on the web. You couldve just respected Sony for this and left it at that...

[BitbyDeath]

He does that to avoid tax. He isn't dumb.

[TechnicianTed]

'Sony CEO and 39 other executives give up bonuses in ‘unprecedented’ gesture'

More like there wasn't enough money for bonuses this year so let's make it out as if we are giving up our bonuses. Lol, great spinning.

[oldassgamer]

There's always money for bonuses...

[Hozi]

The one thing I never got about SONY is that....they are so damn expensive for everything electronics wise except Playstation. (Not including the PS3 at launch)

But I'm glad they dont play stush when it comes to their Games. :)

[Arai]

Labor/economy difference with China/Korea.
I read a while ago that the average salary in China is 248 Euro (give or take 280-300 USD) per month.
So yeah they can afford to price their stuff a lot cheaper.
Since Sony's products (I assume) is mainly designed in Japan that would explain part of the pricing difference.

[GameCents]

Sony products are made in China. Argument invalid.

[jacksons98]

They aren't the cheapest, Sony gives you good value for the money and good quality. On most items I'd rather pay a little more for good quality and that's where Sony is at.

[T2]

Ya Sony still makes good quality electronics they arent disposable and electronic stores, will actually repair them

[urwifeminder]

This is not a good at all they are going down so long,spin this into a positive and mark me for trolling take a pay cut for the fans hysterics.

[BattleTorn]

I know, right!

Everone's praising them as if them giving up their bonuses is a good gesture.

It most definitely is not. It's because they've been in the red for years.

A company's execs giving up bonus is bad, bad sign. (cause it's presumably their last course of action)

[kenshiro100]

...No one implied this was a good thing. But it also shows that there are companies but there who should follow Sony's example, especially when they're company isn't doing so well financially.

[brother_zero]

Hey Sony this might help: reduce the price of Vita to under 200 US and reduce the price of the 7 year old PS3 to under 150 US where it should have been already. Might make some more money, just saying. Why is this hard to figure out?

[joeorc]

"Hey Sony this might help: reduce the price of Vita to under 200 US and reduce the price of the 7 year old PS3 to under 150 US where it should have been already. Might make some more money, just saying. Why is this hard to figure out?"

because that's not where they are freaking bleeding money like a sieve.

the TV industry is where the are loosing the money 9 years worth straight in a freaking row, sony employ's over 160,000+ people world wide, has more company assets than even Microsoft has sales of 78 billion a year but is still bleeding Money! the over head is what is killing them, bleeding more freaking Money is not among some of the answers to fix the issue.

you do not cut the price on Hardware that is in line with the same hardware level as somthing like the Galaxy SIII or iPad III just so as you can take More of a Loss and just to give the freaking Hardware away, when none of the other company's would even never go that low, as a matter of fact you would be paying quite a bit more than freaking $200.00 for a smartphone that had 128 MB of dedicated GPU ram for gaming than what Sony is charging for the PSVita, hell that's what Nintendo was charging for the 3DS and it only has 6 MB of dedicated GPU ram for the 3DS.

http://www.gamespot.com/for...

AND YET NINTENDO CHARGED $250.00 for a handheld with 128 MB of total system ram and a out dated dual core Arm 11 running each core at under 300 MHz AND single core GPU running @268 MHz with 6 MB of dedicated GPU ram, but Sony is slammed to high heaven charging $250.00 for a Quad Core Cortex A9 running at over 800 MHz, with 512 MB of system Ram and a Quad Core SGX543MP4+ RUNNING @ over 400 MHz, with 128 MB of dedicated GPU ram. but yet, that's all you hear is Sony need's to be price as in line with Nintendo's 3DS..yeah of course Sony needs to take a massive loss because Nintendo's undercut and used way lower spec's but Sony is expected to eat that cost?

Sony is not going to up and freaking give it away when no one else is going to even give you nearly half as much for d@mn near twice the price as what Sony is offering.

that is the truth about the handhelds today vs what's inside the PSVita, the PSVita was not made for just right now it was made for the long haul. if you want the system you may have to wait until Sony can drop the price, when its not going to break the bank doing it.

[Godz Kastro]

As much as I would have loved a device like this years ago I wouldnt buy it if it was $50. Not because its not cool; it is. Im not gonna carry that around while I can just carry my ipad which will give me quick gaming experiences on the go and everything else I need all in one little package.

I dont want to play a full blown campaign on the go... Does anyone want to do that now a days?

[iceman06]

@Godz Kastro...In answer to your question...YES! People still want to play full blown campaigns on the go. In fact, millions do that on the 3Ds. Sure, you can get your bite-sized gaming with an iPad. However, you won't get your favorite games and characters. There's no Killzone, Mario, Pokemon, or Uncharted, etc. on the iPad. Plus, with the cross gaming on PS3...you can continue games from the console on the go. I understand YOUR lack of need for this particular system. That's cool for you. I also understand that the tablet and smartphone market has cut into the handheld gaming pie. But, there is still room for those that like to game on the go.

[Main_Street_Saint]

I think that this shows that Sony execs are really trying and that cannot be a bad thing.

[kingPoS]

If only more corporations were as like minded as this shining example of duplicity. The world would be a better place.

Instead you usually feel cheated by their general policy of giving you less product for more $$$.

Gas Internet CellularNetworks CableTV you name it.

[Kennytaur]

Hirai is doing a great job with the company in his rescue mission. I normally don't like big companies, but Sony is one of the few exceptions.

[Evil_Ryu]

Holy smokes they sold 2 Headquarters 1 in new york and 1 in tokyo worth billions but still posted a loss... looks like they are in big trouble

[BitbyDeath]

They returned to black after selling those.

http://in.reuters.com/artic...

[TheKayle1]

456.66 billion yen lost after 4 years in red ....

selling headquarters and cutting jobs...

i dont see sony going good they need to cut and sell...stop to follow the bigs in the market...
resize ur company be what u R....

[Evil_Ryu]

great post bubble for you

[MadMen]

SONY SONY SONY you have fallen far from the PS1 tree

Return to your roots, and they will come and so will bonuses.

[PigPen]

That might be easier said then done.

[jcnba28]

This does not look good for sony.

[BattleTorn]

Yeah, that's what ya do after you spend years in the red

[Jihaad_cpt]

kinda like the American economy. Wish all those cunts in Wall Street would have taken a cut in their bonuses

[kingPoS]

So I take it I may have offended a few - Good!

Many corps would be content to charge more for less. How in the world did it become a stigma for a company to benefit consumers as well if not more so than their own profit margins.

Greed - What does it run on?!?!

[Donnyskillz]

hmmmmmmmmmmm

[RTheRebel]

Yet again, Sony copies Nintendo.

[isyourhouseonfire]

Sounds like the PS4 is already causing heads to roll internally. Giving up a bonus is one way to keep your job!

[MacDonagh]

Didn't Nintendo do a similar sort of thing when they weren't performing well?

That said. It's a welcome gesture. If only the bankers would follow suit but alas.

[Rhezin]

Commendable.

[StreetsofRage]

Desperate times calls for desperate measures. The ps3 has been a disease for them. Hopefully they can recapture their golden years with the ps4.

[Bonerboy]

That's the Japanese for you. A very polite and honourable people.
There wouldn't be a rats ass chance in hell that any of the self absorbed western ceos/execs would do such a thing.
They would keep trying to get blood from a stone and failing that find a semi-legal or downright illegal loophole of some kind to scam more wealth even if it meant kicking people out on to the streets. Oh wait, they already do that.

[TBONEJF]

That's a smart move made by SONY. No CEO'S or executives or stock holders don't deserve a bonsus. EA and other companies could learn from SONY

[gamer7804]

wow.... how noble, their bonuses, they still make a ton off salary. I involuntarily give up my bonuses every year! lol

[tubers]

It's just a strategy to make sure they're far from the lay off list.

[BaSeBaLlKiD721]

Now, wouldn't it be something if the government did the same thing...

[MultiConsoleGamer]

This is a PR fluff piece. How can you tell? These same executives contiued to receive a bonus for the past five years. The same period where Sony wasn't profitable and they were firing people at a rate of roughly 10,000 a year, each year, for the past five years.

You will also see a lot of sock puppet accounts repeating the central premise of this article saying "what a noble gesture, people could learn from this gesture, etc." This is how you spot PR.

[CaptainCamper]

One mention of a console name does not make this gaming related...lol

[SDF Repellent]

Man, N4G fanboys are acting like these Execs are doing it out of the kindness of their heart so they can put some extra $$$ to fund more PS4 exclusives or something. If my company keeps bleeding money year after year, I would stop bonuses too, LOL. Why is this even front page news when it really has nothing to do with gaming??? N4G once again proves that it is indeed Sony central.

[FrigidDARKNESS]

Its hard times at Sony. They are depending on the gaming division tomake all the revenue to keep the company afloat. The gaming division just cant generate enough revenue to invest in other projects and pay share holders.

[Whymii]

That's one chicken
two chickens
three chickens
four chickens
five chickens
six.......
..........

Boy I hope they all hatch.

[TemplarDante]

*slow clap*
keep it up

[Nodoze]

Sony used to make innovative electronics. They OWNED the portable music player space and gave it up to Apple due to lack of innovation. Sony opted for now obsolete technology for their TV's (Lcos) in lieu of LCD and Plasma (a move that cost them dearly). In short they conceded most of their TV share to vendors like Samsung. Yet they still charge a premium price for offerings that are at best equivalent to the competition.

Sony needs to wake up before all the work they have done is for naught. Those executives wont just be giving up a bonus, instead Sony will be giving up the ghost.

[mmj]

It's refreshing to see a responsible company at a time when so many bailed out companies are giving their CEO's million pound bonuses despite failure.

[Objective]

This is another sign of Sony bleeding profusely. If I were MS smelling all this blood, I'd simply go in for the kill with the next Xbox and absorb the costs of specs superior to PS4, buy up major third party exclusives and drive the nail in the coffin. Not saying that's good for the industry of course, but business is business and putting the main competitor down is good business.