Following last week’s announcement that long-serving Sony Computer Entertainment boss Ken Kutaragi is retiring, much attention has been focused on his past achievements and on the corporate machinations which led to his retirement.

This is, of course, perfectly justified. The man dubbed as the “Father of PlayStation” is one of the most important and influential figures in the history of interactive entertainment. His legacy is immense; he entered an industry which catered to children and a niche, geeky audience, and leaves behind one which is a mass-market, fully accepted form of media to almost anyone under the age of 35.

However, there’s a more immediate question to be considered as well – namely, what the repercussions of Kutaragi’s retirement will be for Sony itself in the near term, especially in light of the uphill struggle the company still faces with the PS3.

Taken in that context, the significance of this retirement is interesting. It’s widely accepted that Kutaragi did not retire voluntarily – to do so at his age, given that he has worked at Sony for his entire adult life, would be almost unheard of in Japanese business. Equally, the suggestion that he was retired as “punishment” for the enormous overspend and delays to the PS3 seems likely to be true only in the broadest sense.

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