His present role has its limitations. While the media and technology worlds were being upended by the likes of AOL and Time Warner, Sony struggled to play catch-up in key areas such as the internet and mobile communications. This strategy can be frustrating for a US chief executive officer looking to enhance his company's position in the world's largest market. To fill the company's need for a distribution outlet, for example, Stringer contemplated a bid for DirecTV, the US satellite broadcaster now in takeover talks with Rupert Murdoch. Sony baulked and the idea was dropped.
Investment bankers question the group's strategic direction.
Without the equity base to bulk up or the cash flow to spend on expansion, they argue that it will be left behind in the race for the consumer's home and heart. Stringer believes that Sony has shown that style and pace can win the day. Sony, which eschewed the personal computer industry as a business tool, now sells the fastest growing computer in the Vaio. The company is also placing its bets on broadband as the route to ubiquitous use of its movies, games and music. Stringer inspires a great deal of loyalty from outside as well as within the company.