Michael Lynton, the CEO of Sony Entertainment and executive in the spotlight during the company’s high-profile hack in 2014, will step down, Sony announced on Friday.
Lynton will become the chairman of the board of directors of Snap Inc., the parent company of the popular social media application Snapchat, in which he was an early investor.
Lynton joined Sony in 2004. He will officially remain in his role until Feb. 2 and will work with Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai over the next six months to find a replacement, “in particular for the leadership of Sony Pictures Entertainment,” Sony announced.
Hirai gains the title of chairman and co-CEO of Sony Entertainment and a desk at the company’s Culver City, Calif. offices. Sony’s entertainment companies include film studio Sony Pictures Entertainment, record label Sony Music Entertainment, and music publisher Sony/ATV Music Publishing.
Lynton replaced Amy Pascal, the longtime head of Sony Pictures with whom he shared the spotlight during the 2014 hack, in February of last year. Executive turmoil continued as the film studio endured several flops and adjusted to a new leader.
“It has been an extraordinary 13 years and an honor to work at Sony with some of the most talented and creative people in the entertainment space,” Lynton said in a statement. “I have been involved with Evan [Spiegel, the Snap CEO] and Snapchat since its early days, and given its growth since then, decided the time was right to transition and focus on my role as Chairman of the Board of Snap Inc.”
He added: “I leave Sony with great pride.”
