Sony has announced PlayStation boss Jim Ryan will be retiring next March, after nearly 30 years with the company.

Ryan - whose official job title is president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment - took charge of the PlayStation division back in February 2019, having previously helmed Sony Computer Interactive Europe.

In a statement announcing his retirement, Ryan wrote, "I've relished the opportunity to have a job I love in a very special company, working with great people and incredible partners. But I've found it increasingly difficult to reconcile living in Europe and working in North America.

"I will leave having been privileged to work on products that have touched millions of lives across the world; PlayStation will always be part of my life, and I feel more optimistic than ever about the future of SIE. I want to thank [Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida] for placing so much trust in me and being an incredibly sensitive and supportive leader."

Sony Group Corporation president, chief operating officer, and chief financial officer Hiroki Totoki will assume the role of Sony Interactive Entertainment chairman in October this year to "support [Ryan] in his transition". Totoki will then become interim CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, alongside his current role at Sony, as of 1st April next year.

"I'm immensely grateful to Jim for all his achievements," Kenichiro Yoshida wrote in a statement accompanying news of Ryan's retirement. "Respecting Jim's decision to finish his long career at Sony leaves me with an important decision regarding his succession given the significance of the Game & Network Services business.

"We have discussed intensively and have determined the new management structure. We aim to achieve Sony Group's further evolution and growth through bringing even greater success to the Game & Network Services Business."