Sony Group Corp.'s (NYSE:SONY) Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) has appointed Olivier Courtemanche as its new head of mobile and Justin Kubiak as head of mobile business development and partnerships. Both executives shared their new roles via LinkedIn.
According to GamesIndustry.biz, Courtemanche, who joined SIE in 2022, previously served as PlayStation's co-head of mobile alongside Kris Davis, who is believed to remain in that capacity.
Before his tenure at Sony, Courtemanche accumulated extensive experience at major companies, including Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META), Zynga, Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS), and Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ:EA).
Kubiak, meanwhile, transitions to his new role after leading licensing and developer partnerships for PlayStation's mobile division. Since joining Sony in 2021 from Samsung, where he oversaw games partnerships, Kubiak has brought valuable expertise from his time at NCSoft, Scopely, and Disney Interactive.
These leadership changes come amid a challenging time for Sony's mobile gaming efforts. Last month, the company shut down its first-party mobile studio Neon Koi, originally acquired in 2022 as Savage Game Studios. Founded by industry veterans from Rockstar, Wargaming, and Rovio, the studio rebranded in late 2023 before ultimately closing its doors.
Back in May, the company posted a job listing revealing plans for a dedicated PlayStation mobile platform.
The listing called for "an experienced software engineer" to design the system architecture, manage backend services, and integrate the platform with existing PlayStation services.
This move aligns with Sony's increasing investments in mobile gaming, as it aims to expand beyond its limited mobile portfolio and establish a stronger foothold in the growing $90 billion mobile gaming market.
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