Sony Mobile to focus on East Asia, Europe, and Middle East rather than India, USA

Sony recently held an investors day in Tokyo, giving us a look at what the company has planned over the coming quarters. Most relevant to our interests is the fact that Sony Mobile has announced that they’re adopting a new regional strategy that “defocuses” on the USA and India. Sony Mobile will be shifting energy previously devoted to these shrinking markets to East Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.

The company is justifying this new strategy by pointing to shrinking business in India, the USA, China, and Brazil. Indeed, Sony anticipates only a 0.3 percent growth in smartphones for India, China, Brazil, and Indonesia over the coming year. Comparing this to last year’s estimate of 8.1 percent growth really illustrates how rapidly these markets are cooling.

Of course, smartphone business is decreasing all across the board as previously fire-hot, tech-hungry markets like China have become increasingly saturated. It makes sense that Sony would want to throw its weight into those markets which appear to demonstrate continued growth. In these new focus regions, Sony is planning on pushing hard in the premium smartphone range (+$250), as the entry-level and mid-tier markets are proving to be ruthlessly competitive.

What are your thoughts regarding Sony’s ‘defocusing’ on India and the USA? There are some who might question whether or not Sony was even particularly focused on the USA market in the first place. Give us your opinion in the comments below!