:00:18. > :00:21.News. Now for the latest financial Sony launches the Playstation 4 -
:00:21. > :00:26.its boss calls it the moment of truth for the company. But will it
:00:26. > :00:28.put them back in the game? Plus- coal, conspiracy and copious cash.
:00:29. > :00:38.Billionaire Nat Rothschild heads for a final showdown with
:00:39. > :00:46.
:00:47. > :00:50.Welcome to World Business Report. It's been a big night for computer
:00:50. > :01:00.games players - and an even bigger one for Sony and this chap here -
:01:00. > :01:04.
:01:04. > :01:08.the head of its games division - Andrew House. He even called it the
:01:08. > :01:11.moment of truth for the company. He was talking of course about the
:01:11. > :01:17.launch of the Playstation 4 or PS4 - seen as a make-or-break product
:01:17. > :01:20.for the once dominant electronics giant. Michelle Fleury was at the
:01:20. > :01:30.event - she's just sent this report These are tough times for defence
:01:30. > :01:32.
:01:32. > :01:38.At last, after a seven-year gap, Sony introduced its next-generation
:01:39. > :01:45.games console, the Playstation 4. It hopes to compete against the
:01:45. > :01:51.next offer from Microsoft. Both will be in stores by Christmas.
:01:51. > :01:59.Today marks a moment of truth for Sony has a company, as creators and
:01:59. > :02:05.innovators. They refused to rid reveal the device or offer a price.
:02:05. > :02:09.They showed the new controller. It has a share button. Your friends do
:02:09. > :02:16.not have to be in the same room to watch you play games. It is a key
:02:16. > :02:23.moment. The company wants to find consumer electronics. They had a
:02:23. > :02:29.hit TV in 1968, followed by the Walkman. The first PlayStation was
:02:29. > :02:36.in 1994. Its fortunes reversed and it has not made a profit in years.
:02:36. > :02:40.This is the new landscape they are competing in. This man's company
:02:40. > :02:45.may schemes that do not need a dedicated console. They can be
:02:45. > :02:50.played on something we carry around all the time, a mobile phone.
:02:50. > :03:00.big difference is that we are a race small company. We can be in
:03:00. > :03:02.
:03:02. > :03:10.the same space and room is a really large company, which is incredible
:03:10. > :03:14.in itself. Camserney face up to the challenge? The big question is, do
:03:14. > :03:20.we even need the consoles? Instead of running away from smart phones
:03:20. > :03:25.and tabards, Sony is embracing them. It is bring them into the
:03:25. > :03:30.experience. The one thing that was missing was the device itself. Sony
:03:30. > :03:33.spent a long time talking about the social aspects of the console. It
:03:33. > :03:41.knows that if the console is to succeed, it must do more than just
:03:41. > :03:44.be a reboot of the brand. These are tough times for defence
:03:44. > :03:51.companies. After decades of growth, global sales of military hardware
:03:51. > :03:54.are falling as Western governments cut defence spending. UK arms giant
:03:54. > :03:57.BAE Systems reports results shortly. It's expected to say profits in
:03:57. > :04:07.2012 were hit by cutbacks in the US, its biggest market. Jeremy Howell
:04:07. > :04:08.
:04:08. > :04:14.reports. Seven years ago, BA he decided to sell his stake in civil
:04:14. > :04:21.aircraft makers Airbus to concentrate on bid defence sector
:04:21. > :04:29.of. Since then, it has missed out on summon booming years for the
:04:29. > :04:33.civil airline industry. It is facing tight times ahead. There
:04:33. > :04:38.will be an impact in what is its largest market outside the UK. They
:04:38. > :04:46.are seeking other markets. It is doing well as it moves further into
:04:46. > :04:55.the Middle east. They are moving into new opportunities for every
:04:55. > :05:00.country. The company is looking to the Middle east to fill its order
:05:00. > :05:07.books. It is a major contract to deliver fighters to Saudi Arabia.
:05:07. > :05:14.It recently bought equipment sales in Armagh. It is hoping for further
:05:14. > :05:19.orders from the UAE. An attempt to merge with Airbus shows that it
:05:19. > :05:26.sees the need to re- enter the civil aircraft market. It has
:05:26. > :05:34.become more balanced. They would like an exposure to commercial
:05:34. > :05:40.aerospace. It looks like a good merger. All the industrial
:05:40. > :05:44.reasoning is there. They abandoned a tie-up because of opposition from
:05:44. > :05:52.German politicians. There are widespread expectation that some
:05:52. > :05:56.point it may approach them again. Now, what do these two men have in
:05:56. > :05:59.common and why don't they like each other? On the left is Abdurizal
:05:59. > :06:03.Bakrie, the richest man in Indonesia and a candidate for the
:06:03. > :06:09.country's presidency. On the right, Nat Rothschild, billionaire
:06:09. > :06:12.financier and descendant of the 200-year-old banking dynasty. So-
:06:12. > :06:15.apart from both being very rich - they are also both co-founders of
:06:15. > :06:19.Bumi Resources, one of the world's largest exporters of coal for power
:06:19. > :06:22.stations. They have fallen out spectacularly over the company amid
:06:22. > :06:32.claims of financial irregularities and a plunging share price that has
:06:32. > :06:37.
:06:37. > :06:42.cost its investors a billion dollars. The name is synonymous
:06:42. > :06:47.with power in Indonesia. It has dominated in business for decades.
:06:47. > :06:52.It has holdings in 200 businesses ranging from a mining to media. The
:06:52. > :06:59.current patriarch, Abdurizal Bakrie, is running for Indonesia's
:06:59. > :07:03.president in 2014. The clash between Nat Rothschild and the
:07:03. > :07:10.family of the Abdurizal Bakrie have had a negative impact on the grip's
:07:10. > :07:13.fortune. Local media was rife with speculation that the family will
:07:14. > :07:20.have to sell off their media arm. The company has denied these
:07:20. > :07:26.rumours. Nat Rothschild has also made allegations, saying they have
:07:26. > :07:30.been financial irregularities. The family say this is not true. They
:07:30. > :07:34.have alleged that Nat Rothschild has had their e-mail accounts
:07:34. > :07:38.hacked into and have complained about corporate espionage. This
:07:38. > :07:44.combination of mud-slinging, corporate espionage and mugs of
:07:44. > :07:49.bitter boardroom battles have taken their toll on the share price. The
:07:49. > :07:54.prices dropped by 60% in the last few years. It has not been helped
:07:54. > :07:58.by a dramatic plunge in the price of coal. When shareholders get down
:07:58. > :08:05.to voting on the future of the company, a line will be drawn under
:08:05. > :08:08.the company's troubles. Clara Ferreira Marques is the mining and
:08:08. > :08:18.steel correspondent at Thomson Reuters. She's been covering this
:08:18. > :08:23.
:08:23. > :08:31.story. This really is the clash. The banking dynasty of Abdurizal
:08:31. > :08:35.Bakrie and Nat Rothschild. They run the operational sides of the
:08:35. > :08:43.business. They have been pretty much at odds since the start. They
:08:43. > :08:47.came together in 2010. The company has had a turbulent relationship.
:08:47. > :08:52.The company has only been in existence for two years. It has
:08:52. > :08:58.been troubled ride from beget go. The idea was simple. You bring
:08:58. > :09:03.promising Indonesian assets, puts them in an investment. You bring up
:09:03. > :09:12.the valuations and everyone is a winner. In reality, mistrusts,
:09:12. > :09:17.boardroom battles and falling coal prices have been dramatic. The
:09:17. > :09:27.impact has been a disaster. It has read like a transcript from
:09:27. > :09:32.
:09:32. > :09:37.dynasties. It is clearly a lot at stake. Abdurizal Bakrie would say
:09:37. > :09:41.it is not personal. If he loses today he will still have done a lot
:09:41. > :09:46.to support minority shareholder interests. The bitterness of the
:09:46. > :09:52.battle between the two sides, press releases, full-page advertisements,
:09:52. > :09:59.it will be seen as a personal loss. Do you think investors may look
:09:59. > :10:04.toward Nat Rothschild and say, you should have seen this coming? This
:10:04. > :10:11.was almost predictable. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Everything
:10:11. > :10:20.looks a lot better in 2010. He has had some success elsewhere. His
:10:20. > :10:29.initial investment has been a lot less problematic. Perhaps he could
:10:29. > :10:37.have seen it coming. They could have found some of the problems.
:10:37. > :10:41.next few hours unfold. In other news, Australian airline Qantas
:10:41. > :10:46.says it has been paid $128 million in compensation by Boeing so far
:10:46. > :10:48.for delays in delivery of its troubled Dreamliner jet. That and
:10:48. > :10:51.the ongoing turnaround in its loss- making international business
:10:51. > :11:00.helped the carrier report higher profits in the second half of last
:11:00. > :11:02.year. Top of the agenda in the US - results from the world's largest
:11:02. > :11:04.retailer Wal-Mart. It's expected to post higher
:11:04. > :11:11.profits on rising sales in the US despite pressures including higher
:11:11. > :11:14.fuel prices and an increase in payroll tax.
:11:14. > :11:17.Results out too from computer maker Hewlett Packard. Investors will be