Jack Tretton, President and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America and one of the division’s earliest executives when it was founded in 1995, is stepping down at the end of March, according to a press release from Sony Computer Entertainment International. Tretton, who has been the face of PlayStation in North America, and worked at PlayStation through all of the company’s console launches up to and including last year’s record-breaking launch of the PlayStation 4, will serve his last day on March 31. His replacement, Shawn Layden, will assume Tretton’s responsibilities on April 1. Layden currently serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Office of Sony Network Entertainment International, which encompasses the PlayStation Network, Music Unlimited, and Video Unlimited services.

In addition to Sony’s press release, Tretton issued a statement via the US PlayStation Blog. Tretton expressed gratitude for his time with the company, and proclaimed that “serving PlayStation fans for the past 19 years has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my career.”  Elaborating in the press release, Tretton said though he “will deeply miss the talented team at SCEA and the passion demonstrated every day by our fans, I’m very excited about starting the next chapter of my career.”

Sony Computer Entertainment group CEO Andrew House also commented on Tretton’s departure, saying “I’ve worked with Jack for nearly two decades and I want to personally thank him for his leadership and the considerable contributions he’s made to the SCEA business and PlayStation brand over the years. I wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors.” House went on to welcome Shawn Layden to his new responsibilities, adding “I have the utmost confidence in Shawn’s leadership capabilities, and his deep knowledge of the gaming industry and commitment to gamers, will help keep PlayStation at the forefront of entertainment and innovative gameplay.”

Layden, who has been with PlayStation for 15 years and become Executive VP of SEN in 2010, also was quoted in the press release, stating the following: “It’s an honor and privilege to join Sony Computer Entertainment America and be a part of the team that is leading the next generation of gaming and entertainment.” Layden previously served as president of Sony Computer Entertainment, Japan, and worked as part of SCE Worldwide Studios in London.

Tretton has been the public face of PlayStation in the United States for almost twenty years, and has generally been applauded for his approach to consumers and openness about SCEA’s business. Some of Tretton’s more memorable moments have come at Sony’s annual E3 press conferences, including his 2011 apology for the PlayStation Network hack and ensuing outage, and last year’s announcements regarding used games and online restrictions (or lack thereof) for the PlayStation 4.

Jack Tretton’s departure comes on the heels of other high profile moves within Sony Computer Entertainment America. Just this week, Uncharted creative director Amy Hennig left Naughty Dog after ten years, and last week saw significant layoffs at God of War developer Sony Santa Monica. While the success of the PS4 continues around the globe, it’s troubling to see so many major changes to the layout of SCEA in such a short span of time. With the Game Developers Conference, PAX East, and E3 just around the corner, there are sure to be other major announcements and changes coming. SonyRumors is your place for everything Sony, so check back here in the weeks and months to come.

Discuss:

What does Jack Tretton’s departure mean for PlayStation? How would you rate his tenure as president and CEO?