Sony Corporation has announced that Nicole Seligman has been named to a new position — president of Sony Entertainment, the parent company of subsidiaries Sony Pictures Entertainment, Sony Music Entertainment and joint venture Sony/ATV Music Publishing.
In this new role, Seligman will report to Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton and will help drive profitability, growth and innovation in the company’s entertainment sector.
Seligman was also named senior legal counsel, Sony Group, changed from EVP, general counsel, corporate executive officer, Sony Corporation.
Also read: Sony, James Bond Producers to Adapt Glenn Greenwald’s Edward Snowden Book
Seligman’s positions as president, Sony Corporation of America and as a member of Sony’s Group Executive Committee remain unchanged. She continues to report to Sony Corporation president and CEO Kazuo Hirai in these Sony Group roles.
As president of Sony Entertainment, Seligman will oversee key HQ functions of the subsidiary companies, such as finance, human resources, legal and corporate communications, whose functional heads will report directly both to her and their respective chief executive officers, who will continue to report to Lynton. As an integral part of her new role Seligman will also work with Lynton to develop overall strategy and growth opportunities, identify and implement efficiencies within and among the three Sony Entertainment companies, and expand the businesses’ combined global footprint and influence.
“I sought out Nicole for this role and am thrilled to work with her to explore new ways to leverage Sony Entertainment’s business and creative assets into new opportunities for profitability and growth,” said Lynton. “We have so much talent to draw upon, and I’m very happy that we now also have Nicole’s broad experience and proven judgment focused on moving Sony Entertainment forward.”
“Nicole is a dynamic and respected leader whose experience and skills are ideally suited to help spur the growth of our Sony Entertainment properties, while continuing her essential role as an advisor to me and Tokyo senior management,” said Hirai. “This shift in Nicole’s focus, and new management model, reaffirm Sony’s emphasis on and commitment of significant resources to growth in our Entertainment company.”
Also read: Sony Classics Buys Palme d’Or Contender ‘Leviathan’
“I look forward to continuing to work closely with Michael as we harness the exceptional talent of our people and encourage the development of new synergy points to catalyze innovation throughout the company,” said Seligman. “I appreciate the confidence that Kaz and Michael have shown in me, and I’m eager to build upon a very productive, collaborative relationship in pursuit of our shared objectives for Sony Entertainment.”
As president of Sony Corporation of America, a position she has held since June 2012, Seligman will continue to oversee the operations of Sony’s U.S. headquarters.
Seligman joined SCA as executive VP and general counsel in September 2001, was named corporate executive officer, Sony Corporation, in June 2003, and was promoted to executive VP and general counsel of Sony Corporation in June 2005.
Previously, she was a partner in the litigation practice of Williams & Connolly in Washington, D.C., where she worked on a broad range of complex civil and criminal matters and counseled a wide range of clients, including President Bill Clinton and Lt. Col. Oliver North. Prior to that, she served as law clerk to Justice Thurgood Marshall on the Supreme Court of the United States (1984-1985) and to Judge Harry T. Edwards at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (1983-law). From 1978-l980, she was associate editorial page editor for the Asian Wall Street Journal based in Hong Kong.