Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO and president Jim Ryan is retiring from his position leading the PlayStation business, Sony announced Wednesday. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier first reported the news Wednesday afternoon before Sony published its news release. Ryan will step down in March 2024 after 30 years at Sony and PlayStation.
Sony Group Corporation president and chief operating officer Hiroki Totoki will lead Sony Interactive Entertainment as interim CEO, starting on April 1, 2024. Ryan cited difficulties in “striking the right balance” between his home in the U.K. and his job in the U.S. as a factor in his decision to retire.
“I feel humbled at having the opportunity to lead a company delivering products that touch millions of lives,” Ryan said in his announcement on the corporate PlayStation website. “From award-winning games to the incredibly immersive technical achievements delivered with PlayStation 5, I’m immensely proud of what we have achieved and very optimistic for the future of Sony Interactive Entertainment.”
Sony has not immediately responded to Polygon’s request for comment.
Ryan stepped into the top role at Sony’s PlayStation division in 2019, when he took over for former president John Kodera. Kodera, at that time, became deputy president before leaving the company in 2021. Ryan started at Sony in 1994, when he joined the company’s European operations at what was then called Sony Computer Entertainment Europe.