Sony ex-CEO Nobuyuki Idei, who led brand’s global growth, dies at 84

Nobuyuki Idei, who led Japan’s Sony from 1998 through 2005, steering its growth in the digital and entertainment businesses, has died, the company said Tuesday. He was 84.

Idei died of liver failure on June 2 in Tokyo, Sony Group Corp. said in a statement.

Sony Chief Executive Kenichiro Yoshida said he and the company were indebted to Idei’s vision in preparing Sony for the Internet age.

During his seven years as CEO from 1998, Mr Idei made an immense contribution to Sony’s evolution as a global company. In particular, the prescience and foresight with which he predicted the impact of the Internet and engaged proactively with digitalization across Sony amazes me to this day, he said.