World's saddest TV pitchman loses his marketing department

Regular readers -- at least those with a heart -- might remember the saddest man at this year's CES.

He was selling Sharp's televisions. No one was listening. And now I hear of more woes that might impact his performance next year.

For AdAge is reporting that Sharp has eliminated its whole marketing department. Entirely.

There were reportedly 12 people in Sharp's marketing. Now they have been entirely blunted.

Sharp's PR agency offered this commentary to AdAge:

The functions of (Sharp's) Marketing and Communications Department will now be contained within its individual business units. These actions will enable us to more fully integrate marketing and product development activities directly within business units they serve and streamline decision making.

I am sure Sharp makes very fine televisions.

I know I have operated them in houses in which I have stayed and found them to be very fine.

However, the brand seems to lack a little definition -- as, perhaps, the lonely pitchman's plight at CES showed. And as, perhaps, a loss of $4 billion last year also showed.

One can only hope that this rejiggering will include something more exciting to be pitched when the dancing boys and girls return to Vegas in January.