Susan Panico, the head of Sony’s PlayStation Network (PSN), has left that company, according to a report from Venture Beat.
Panico’s tenure as head of the PSN was reportedly marked by vast growth, but was marred in the last year by a series of missteps, including the May, 2011 data breach affecting some 100 million people.
Panico held various roles during her time at Sony Computer Entertainment of America, which began in Sony’s marketing department in 1994. Under her direction, Panico guided the network from its infancy to the enormous online community of 77 million online gamers it is today.
There is no indication in the report that Panico’s departure is in any way related to the PSN data breach.
Sony and the Playstation Network came under intense scrutiny after being targeted by hackers, including the group LulzSec. The company darkened PSN for weeks after learning of the breach. That blackout extended to the Sony Online Entertainment Website as well. Troubles have continued to plague the online properties of the electronics giant. In October, Sony said that it had locked 93,000 accounts after detecting attempts to breach the security of those accounts.
