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"Sony today announced 2000 planned job cuts in Japan via an \"early retirement\" scheme. The Next Web reports the layoffs are expected to hit the PlayStation manufacturer's head office the hardest, with 20 percent of the employees there leaving by the end of the year. Sony believes this move is going to save the company 30 billion yen ($378 million) annually from next year onwards.The move is in line with the expected 10,000 layoffs Sony announced earlier this year. In August, Sony revealed a $312 million loss for Q1 2012, with $45 million lost across its gaming division. Shortly after, Sony closed its Liverpool studio in the UK. Earlier this year, Sony also closed Zipper Interactive and BigBig Studios. The company's struggles have also resulted in the closure of its lens factory in Minokamo, where 840 employees are based. Some of the factory's operations are being transferred elsewhere, but not all, so it's unclear how many layoffs the closure will result in."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/19/sony-is-cutting-2000-jobs-in-japan-via-early-retirement-scheme/>