Pulse2 Technology and Social Media News » Sony Corporation

Sony’s Most Profitable Business Is Not Related To Gadgets

Amit Chowdhry — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:23:14 +0000

Last week, Forrester CEO George Colony heavily criticized Apple CEO Tim Cook for not having the same charismatic abilities as Steve Jobs in an article entitled Apple = Sony. In the article, Colony claimed that having Tim Cook as Apple’s current leader will ultimately lead to their downfall just like Sony (post Morita). Jean-Louis Gassée of The MondayNote.com noted in a rebuttal article against Colony that Sony’s most profitable business is financial services. This is like comparing apples and oranges. “How this leads to an = sign between Apple and Sony evades me,” wrote Gassée.

Sony Financial is a holding company for Sony’s financial services. It owns and oversees businesses like Sony Life Insurance, Sony Bank, Sony Assurance, and Sony Bank Securities. The market cap of Sony Financial Holdings Inc (TYO:8729) is $568.98 billion and they are headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

Sony PlayStation Network To Be Down For 13 Hours Today

Amit Chowdhry — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 04:49:24 +0000

If you are a PlayStation 3 gamer, you will be disappointed to know that you will not be able to log in to the PlayStation Network for 13 hours today. Sony said that this is necessary maintenance on the network. They are going to optimize things and clean up. The network will go offline at 9AM Eastern time and it will last for about 13 hours. “During much of this time, users won’t be able to access the PlayStation Store, PlayStation Home, Account Management or play online. PSN enabled websites will not be able to service users, including [the PlayStation Blog],” stated PlayStation Digital Platforms senior manager Matthew Harper.

Sony To Focus On Mobile, Cameras, and Games, But Won’t Retreat In TV Market

Amit Chowdhry — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 03:33:30 +0000

Last Thursday, Sony’s new CEO Kazuo Hirai gave a presentation where he vowed “the time for Sony to change is now.” Sony is dealing with all kinds of competition and the company has not reported a profit since 2008. The situation at the company as very bad as they had to report $6.4 billion in losses this year. Hirai said that going forward, Sony will focus on three businesses: smartphones and tablets, cameras and camcorders, and games. However Sony will not retreat in TVs. “It’s at the center of every home,” said Hirai. “It is part of Sony’s DNA.”

Sony SmartWatch Brings Social Networking To Your Wrist

Amit Chowdhry — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 04:10:38 +0000

Sony Corporation has announced a new device called the Sony SmartWatch, which runs on Android. The Sony SmartWatch allows you to read text messages, social status updates, and e-mails. You can also control music and take phone calls on the device. The SmartWatch controls to your Android phone using Bluetooth.

The Sony SmartWatch is made out of rubber and it comes in different colors like white, mint, blue, and pink. The black strap is standard. On top of the strap is the watch’s touch-screen OLED is 1.3 inches. The watch vibrates when there is an incoming call or a text message.

The watch can run on a handset four days on a single charge and is dust and splash proof. The Sony SmartWatch is available for a cost of $149.99 is and available on the company’s online marketplace. The watch will be available at other retailers soon.

Next Sony PlayStation Rumored To Be Called “Orbis”

Amit Chowdhry — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 03:51:05 +0000

We know that the upcoming Nintendo console will be called the Wii U, but we have no idea what the new PlayStation and Xbox will be called. Rumor has it that the new PlayStation will be called the “Orbis.” The “Orbis” is believed to have an AMD x64 CPU and AMD Southern Islands GPU that can output at 4096 x 2160. Games will be available as either Blu-ray discs or PSN downloads. [Kotaku]

Sony Announces Xperia P and Xperia U Phones

Amit Chowdhry — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 23:15:13 +0000

Today Sony announced the Xperia P and the Xperia U smartphones running on Android. This is the first product introduction that Sony has made since going independent from Ericsson.

“We will revitalize our product portfolio,” stated Sony CEO Kaz Hirai. Many of Sony’s new phones will be able to support PlayStation games just like the initial Xperia play device.

The Xperia P phone is the first phone with a new WhiteMagic display technology which is designed for better viewing in direct sunlight. The Xperia U is expected to start shipping next quarter.

Nintendo and Sony No Longer On List Of Companies That Support SOPA

Amit Chowdhry — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 21:50:39 +0000

The list of supporters (PDF) of the Stop Online Pirate Act (SOPA) has been updated. it appears that Sony and Nintendo have both dropped out, which indicates that they are not directly in support of the bill as a company any more. Both of these companies were endorsing the bill back in November. Likely the two companies saw the outrage that Internet advocates have made about the bill and decided to no longer be associated with SOPA. [Electronista]

Samsung Buys Sony’s Stake In S-LCD For $940 Million

Amit Chowdhry — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 01:56:26 +0000

Sony is selling their shares in LCD panel joint-venture company S-LCD to Samsung electronics for $940 million. Sony is struggling to make profits from their TV line. S-LCD is a joint venture between Sony and Samsung. Now Samsung will now fully own the subsidiary. This deal is expected to close in January 2012.

“This transaction will enable [Sony] to monetize its shares in S-LCD and aims to secure a flexible and steady supply of LCD panels from Samsung, based on market prices and without the responsibility and costs of operating a manufacturing facility” stated Sony. This past November Sony warned of $1.15 billion in losses.

[SlashGear]

Sony Ericsson To Become Known As Just Sony In Mid-2012

Amit Chowdhry — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 20:57:14 +0000

Sony Corporation (NYSE:SNE) and Ericsson have been known as Sony Ericsson for the past 10 years, but the combined company has been through a decline in market share. Now Ericsson will have until mid-2012 to clear their name from marketing materials and other combined business related operations. After that Sony will develop phones strictly under the Sony-only brand. [Times Of India]

Sony Forecasting $1.2 Billion In Fourth Consecutive Annual Loss

Amit Chowdhry — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 16:44:09 +0000

Sony Corporation (NYSE:SNE) has forecasted their fourth consecutive annual loss and has slashed their TV sales targets due to the yen reaching a postwar high and due to floods in Thailand, which caused a cut in production. The company is predicting a 90 billion-yen ($1.2 billion) annual loss, compared to an earlier forecast for a 60 billion-yen of full-year profit.

For the quarter ended September 30, Sony reported an unexpected loss of 27 billion yen. Sony also lowered their TV sales targets to 20 million units from 22 million units. Thailand is having their worst floods in almost 70 years, which will cause a delay in the introduction of the NEX and Alpha cameras.

Sony is taking a 50 billion yen charge to streamline their TV operations, which is expected to lose 175 billion yen this year. Sony is writing down the value of some facilities, which will reduce the number of TV models and cut expenses as marketing divisions. Sony is hoping to make this unit profitable by March 2014. Sony has also organized the TV division into three groups due to a loss of about 480 billion yen in the past 7 fiscal years.

Sony has also cut their annual compact-camera sales projection to 23 million units from 24 million and lowered the estimate for Blu-ray disco players to 7.9 million from 9.4 million.