It may be the end of an era for Japanese electronics firm Sony Corp. with the company saying it would spin off its loss making video and audio units.

The news came Wednesday from Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai, who said the company would no longer pursue sales growth in divisions where it has suffered heavy competition, such as smartphones.

“The strategy starting from the next business year will be about generating profit and investing for growth,” Hirai told a briefing.

Going forward Hirai said that Sony wanted to focus on its profitable business units, including entertainment operations such as TV programming, the PlayStation game business and camera sensors.

The spun off units would be given greater autonomy to make their own business decisions, but Hirai would not rule out considering an exit strategy, suggesting that Sony would consider selling the units outright.

Hirai noted that under the plan, which includes an ongoing restructure of its head office, including job losses, Sony would deliver a profit of 500 billion yen ($4.2 billion) by March 2018.

A tech innovator who gifted products such as the Walkman to the world, Sony has struggled in recent years in many of its once core business units. In mobile phones Sony has become a bit player way behind market leaders Apple and Samsung and its television business has struggled against the rise South Korean companies, LG and Samsung among them.

photo credit: The magnificent Playstation booth via photopin (license)