Sony Sells Its Vaio Brand To JIP
As it turns out, the rumour was true. Sony is indeed selling its Vaio PC business in order to focus on improving its gaming, mobile and TV line. But contrary to earlier rumours, Lenovo won’t be involved in the sell-off. Instead, Sony will sell its PC business to Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) in a deal set to conclude by the end of March…
As it turns out, the rumour was true. Sony is indeed selling its Vaio PC business in order to focus on improving its gaming, mobile and TV line. But contrary to earlier rumours, Lenovo won’t be involved in the sell-off. Instead, Sony will sell its PC business to Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) in a deal set to conclude by the end of March.
There’s no concrete information yet on the details of the deal, specifically in terms of the amount JIP will cash out for the Vaio brand. But what is known though is the two companies’ transition plan. For starters, Sony said it will cut down 5000 jobs worldwide (1500 in Japan) by the end of fiscal year 2014. JIP on the other hand will retain 250-300 of Sony’s employees, specifically those involved in design, development manufacturing and sales to help in the transition.
Sony also said that it has now halted any designing and development projects for its PC arm, while manufacturing and sales will wrap up after all of the company’s products goes on sale globally. JIP will continue to honour aftercare warranties of these products so consumers will still have support even after the deal.
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