After serving nearly two decades as President and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment of America, Jack Tretton will be officially stepping down from his position at the end of this month. With helping provide input into the development and publishing for the PlayStation brand (dating back to 1995), Tretton has been the voice and face of Sony’s American division for gaming and was essentially the mastermind behind the original PlayStation Vita.
Current Executive Vice President and COO of Sony Network Entertainment International, Shawn Layden will fill Tretton’s role as President for the company, effective April 1st. There are no details at the moment where Jack will be heading to continue his career, but both parties revealed his leaving of SCE was mutual agreement. Tretton did however leave the brand in a good position, now given the success of the PlayStation 4 selling over 6 million consoles in just 4 months; 2 million more than its direct competitor, the Xbox One.
You can view Jack Tretton’s official exit statement after the jump.
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“Working at SCEA for the past 19 years has been the most rewarding experience of my career,” said Tretton. “Although I will deeply miss the talented team at SCEA and the passion demonstrated every day by our fans, I’m very excited about starting the next chapter of my career. I want to thank the employees, partners and customers for their tireless commitment to the PlayStation brand and, of course, to our fans who have pushed us to new heights of innovation and entertainment over the past two decades. I leave PlayStation in a position of considerable strength and the future will only get brighter for PlayStation Nation.”
“It’s an honor and privilege to join Sony Computer Entertainment America and be a part of the team that is leading the next generation of gaming and entertainment,” said Layden. “SCEA is committed to delivering breakthrough gaming experiences that inspire fans and exceed their wildest expectations. As PS4™ shows us every day, there has never been a better time to be part of the PlayStation community and I look forward to working with our retail, development, publishing and network partners to further demonstrate why PlayStation is the best place to play.”
“I’ve worked with Jack for nearly two decades and I want to personally thank him for his leadership and the considerable contributions he’s made to the SCEA business and PlayStation brand over the years. I wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors,” said Andrew House, President and Group CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment. “I also want to welcome Shawn to the Sony Computer Entertainment America team. I have the utmost confidence in Shawn’s leadership capabilities, and his deep knowledge of the gaming industry and commitment to gamers, will help keep PlayStation at the forefront of entertainment and innovative gameplay.”