If you’ve been waiting for the latest and greatest Walkman phone from Sony Ericsson, we’ve got some bad news. Sony has announced that it plans to buy out Ericsson’s 50 percent share in the two companies’ joint venture — at a cool €1.05 billion ($1.47 billion). The goal of the acquisition, according to Sony, is “to rapidly integrate smartphones into its broad array of network-connected consumer electronics devices.”
In other words, “feature phones,” like the aforementioned Walkman line, are kaput. CEO Howard Stringer confirmed as much during a press conference. The acquisition will allow the company to focus on Android smartphones that will integrate with its other products. As Mr. Stringer puts it, “We can help people enjoy all our content – from movies to music and games – through our many devices, in a way no one else can.” The buyout is scheduled to go through this January.
Continue reading Sony snaps up the rest of Ericsson — so long, feature phones
Sony snaps up the rest of Ericsson — so long, feature phones originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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