Most gamers, especially fanboys, vehemently protest any news of Sony suffering financial instability, no matter what industry experts are saying.

The Times is now reporting that sources at Sony are talking about impending changes within the company's infrastructure -- big changes, even.  It's also being referred to as "sacred cow-slaying" measures, which will drastically change many of Sony's established business practices; and this is on top of the 16k jobs being cut. 

Analysts have been predicting this for some time, but now they're saying that no amount of change will help Sony out of their hole unless president Sir Howard Stringer is allowed to take control, just as he did in 2005.  Though they have been expecting this much needed restructuring plan, analysts still think it may have come too late for Sony.

Credit Suisse analyst Koya Tabata is just one of many analysts who have been calling for these changes, recommending that the reins be handed over to Sir Howard as soon as possible:

“The most important thing is that, to improve organisational strength in the areas of development, purchasing and marketing, it will be necessary to further concentrate power in the hands of [Sir Howard] and unless this is achieved we believe [Sony] will be unable to close the gap with competitors such as Apple and Nintendo.”

It all sounds so simple, but conflicts between the more entrenched Japanese Sony and its US and European operations have risen in these tough economic times.  While many are calling for dramatic reformation, culture clashes have become more apparent.  However, several Japanese analysts have supported the British-born Howard Stringer, saying that he should take his "gloves-off" approach to running Sony even if the corporation's Japanese operations have to take the bigger fall.