Near the end of 2014, it became clear that Sony's mobile unit was in trouble with financial losses and staff cuts. In February, Sony stated that 2,100 jobs in the mobile segment would be cut by the end of FY2015.
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TechCrunch reported that almost 1,000 jobs would be cut in Swedish manufacturing and R&D centers. This number is part of the 2,100 identified late last year as part of the global change in organization structure. Sony stated that remaining employees in the Lund facility would focus on software development and customer services.
In other Sony mobile news, the fantastic Sony Xperia Z3 I purchased last fall is finally receiving the Android Lollipop update. T-Mobile energetic Des Smith Tweeted the news about the update starting to roll out today.
Unfortunately, I recently sold my Xperia Z3 since Sony and T-Mobile couldn't get an update out to fix text messaging, VoLTE, and other issues. Hopefully this update provides fixes for issues beyond the Lollipop update. Band 12 support is also included with this update.
Sony struggles to succeed in the US market with limited release of its products, T-Mobile and Verizon are the only ones with the latest Xperia products. Sony recently announced the new Xperia Z3+, but there is no word on a US release of this device. It's a shame because the Sony Xperia products are outstanding and could do well with wider carrier adoption.