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{{Short description|Japanese multinational mass media & conglomerate corporation}}
{{Redirect2|SONY|Sony Corporation|the American subsidiary|Sony Corporation of America|other uses|Sony (disambiguation)}}
{{distinguish|Sany}}
{{Merge from |Grand WEGA |date=June 2025 }}
{{Pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Pp-move}}
{{Pp-move-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021|cs1-dates=y}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Sony Group Corporation
| logo = Sony logo.svg{{!}}class=skin-invert
| logo_upright = 1.1
| logo_caption = Logo used since 1973
| image = Sony headquaters 1.jpg
| image_upright = 1.1
| image_caption = Headquarters in [[Minato, Tokyo]]
| native_name = ソニーグループ株式会社
| native_name_lang = ja
| romanized_name = ''Sonī Gurūpu [[Kabushiki gaisha|Kabushiki Kaisha]]''
| former_name = {{Unbulleted indent list
  | Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo K.K. (1946{{nbndash}}1957)
  | Sony Corporation (1958{{nbndash}}2021){{efn|Since April 2021, the "Sony Corporation" legal name is used for Sony Group's electronics business that was previously known as "Sony Electronics Corporation".}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/ServiceArea/210401E/|title=Change of the Sony entity for License Agreements, etc.|date=1 April 2021|access-date=7 May 2021|website=www.sony.net|publisher=Sony Group Corporation|archive-date=2023-03-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230318211939/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/ServiceArea/210401E/|url-status=live}}</ref>
}}
| type = [[Public company|Public]]
| traded_as = {{plainlist|
* {{TYO|6758}}
* {{NYSE|SONY}}
* [[Nikkei 225]] component
* [[TOPIX]] Core30 component
}}
| industry = [[Conglomerate (company)|Conglomerate]]
| foundation = {{Start date and age|df=yes|1946|5|7}}<br />[[Nihonbashi]], Chūō, Tokyo, Japan<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony Corporate History |url=https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/company/ |access-date=3 April 2021 |website=sony.com |language=en |archive-date=2021-04-13  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210413190256/https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/company/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
| founders = {{plainlist|
* [[Masaru Ibuka]]
* [[Akio Morita]]
}}
| hq_location = [[Sony City]]
| hq_location_city = Minato, Tokyo
| hq_location_country = Japan
| num_locations_year = 2016
| area_served = Worldwide
| key_people = {{plainlist|
* [[Kenichiro Yoshida]]<br>{{small|(Executive Chairman)}}
* [[Hiroki Totoki]]<br>{{small|(President and CEO)}}
}}
| products = {{plainlist| 
* [[Automotive]]
* [[Camera]]s
* [[Computer hardware]]
* [[Consumer electronics]]
* [[Film]]s
* [[Music]]
* [[Robot]]s
* [[Semiconductor]]s
* [[Telecommunications equipment]]
* [[Television show]]s
* [[Video game]]s
}}
| services = {{plainlist|
* [[Advertising agency]]
* [[Bank]]ing
* [[Credit (finance)|Credit finance]] 
* [[Financial services]]
* [[Insurance]]
* [[Network service]]s
}}
| revenue = {{increase}} [[Japanese yen|¥]]12.87 trillion<br>(US$90.14 billion) (2024)
| operating_income = {{increase}} ¥1.44 trillion<br>(US$10.09 billion) (2024)
| net_income = {{Decrease}} ¥957.4 billion<br>(US$6.69 billion) (2024)
| assets = {{Increase}} ¥32.76 trillion (US$229.25 billion) (2024)
| equity = {{increase}} ¥8.04 trillion<br>(US$56.26 billion) (2024)
| num_employees = 113,000<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/data/ |title=Corporate Info |access-date=2023-12-06 |archive-date=2023-12-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207042724/https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/data/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
| num_employees_year = 2023
| divisions = {{Unbulleted indent list
  | [[Sony Corporation]]
  | [[Sony Financial Group]]
  | [[Sony Global Solutions]]
  | [[Sony Interactive Entertainment]]
  | [[Sony Music Entertainment Japan]]
  | [[Sony Semiconductor Solutions]]
  | [[Sony Corporation of America]]
  | [[Sony Honda Mobility]]
}}
| subsid = [[List of assets owned by Sony]]
| homepage = {{URL|https://www.sony.com/en/|sony.com}}
| footnotes = Financials {{As of|2021|3|31|lc=y|pre=fiscal year ended}}.<br />References:<ref name=":Financial">{{Cite web|url=https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/IR/library/presen/er/pdf/20q4_sony.pdf|title=Financial Statements and Consolidated Financial Results|publisher=SONY Corporation|website=sony.com|access-date=27 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210504085519/https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/IR/library/presen/er/pdf/20q4_sony.pdf|archive-date=4 May 2021|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="sony.net">{{Cite web |date=31 March 2019 |title=Corporate Data |url=https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/library/presen/er/pdf/18q4_sony.pdf |access-date=3 April 2019 |publisher=Sony Corporation |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190728231233/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/library/presen/er/pdf/18q4_sony.pdf |archive-date=28 July 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref>
}}

{{Nihongo foot|'''Sony Group Corporation'''|ソニーグループ株式会社|Sonī Gurūpu Kabushiki Kaisha|{{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|oʊ|n|i}}|group=lower-alpha|extra2={{respell|SOH|nee}}|lead=yes}} is a Japanese multinational mass media & [[conglomerate (company)|conglomerate]] headquartered at [[Sony City]] in [[Minato, Tokyo]], Japan.<ref>"[https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/Data/Map/ Access & Map] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416150015/https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/Data/Map/|date=2021-04-16}}." Sony Global. Retrieved 2 April 2021. "1–7–1 Konan Minato-ku, Tokyo 108-0075, Japan" – [https://web.archive.org/web/20120227050438/http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/Data/Map/map_head_office.pdf Map] – [https://www.sony.jp/CorporateCruise/SMOJ-info/Profile.html Address in Japanese] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230926182046/https://www.sony.jp/CorporateCruise/SMOJ-info/Profile.html|date=2023-09-26}}: "〒108-0075 東京都港区港南1–7–1"</ref> The '''Sony''' Group encompasses various businesses, including [[Sony Corporation]] (electronics), [[Sony Semiconductor Solutions]] (imaging and sensing), [[Sony Entertainment]] (including [[Sony Pictures]] and [[Sony Music Group]]), [[Sony Interactive Entertainment]] (video games), [[Sony Financial Group]], and others.

Sony was founded in 1946 as initially {{Nihongo foot|'''Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo K.K.'''|東京通信工業株式会社|4=Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corporation|lead=yes|group=lower-alpha|Tōkyō Tsūshin Kōgyō Kabushiki Kaisha}} by [[Masaru Ibuka]] and [[Akio Morita]]. In 1958, the company adopted the name {{Nihongo foot|'''Sony Corporation'''.|ソニー株式会社|lead=yes|group=lower-alpha|Sonī Kabushiki Kaisha}} Initially an electronics firm, it gained early recognition for products such as the [[TR-55]] transistor radio and the [[CV-2000]] home video tape recorder, contributing significantly to Japan's [[Japanese economic miracle|post-war economic recovery]].<ref name=":8">{{Cite news |last=Sterngold |first=James |date=1997-12-20 |title=Masaru Ibuka, 89, Engineer And Sony Co-Founder, Dies |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/12/20/business/masaru-ibuka-89-engineer-and-sony-co-founder-dies.html |access-date=2025-02-06 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Week |first=Marketing |date=2005-03-17 |title=Saving Sony before it falls |url=https://www.marketingweek.com/saving-sony-before-it-falls/ |access-date=2025-02-06 |website=Marketing Week |language=en}}</ref> After Ibuka's retirement in the 1970s, Morita served as chairman until 1994, overseeing Sony's rise as a global brand recognized for innovation in [[consumer electronics]].<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Gardiner |first=Bryan |title=As Sony's TV Business Crumbles, a Look Back at Its Most Iconic Sets |url=https://www.wired.com/2014/05/the-greatest-sony-televisions/ |access-date=2025-02-06 |magazine=Wired |language=en-US |issn=1059-1028}}</ref> Landmark products included the [[Trinitron]] color television, the [[Walkman]] portable audio player, and the co-development of the [[compact disc]].<ref name=":8" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Neate |first=Rupert |date=2014-12-13 |title=A history of Sony's successes and failures |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/dec/13/sony-successes-failures-inventions-walkman-music |access-date=2025-02-06 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

Expanding beyond electronics, Sony acquired [[Columbia Records]] in 1988 and [[Columbia Pictures]] in 1989, while also entering the home video game console market with the launch of the [[PlayStation]] in 1994. In Japan, the company further diversified by establishing a financial services division. In 2021, the company was renamed Sony Group Corporation as it transitioned into a [[holding company]] structure, with its electronics business continuing under the name Sony Corporation.

{{As of|2020}}, Sony holds a 55% share of the global [[image sensor]] market, making it the largest image sensor manufacturer,<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |title=Sony's key image sensor business hit by smartphone market decline |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Sony-s-key-image-sensor-business-hit-by-smartphone-market-decline |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210217123743/https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Sony-s-key-image-sensor-business-hit-by-smartphone-market-decline |archive-date=2021-02-17 |access-date=2020-09-01 |website=Nikkei Asian Review}}</ref> the second largest camera manufacturer,<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 August 2020 |title=2019 Market Share Data Shows Canon and Sony Growing, Nikon Shrinking {{!}} PetaPixel |url=https://petapixel.com/2020/08/14/2019-market-share-data-shows-canon-and-sony-growing-nikon-shrinking/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416133634/https://petapixel.com/2020/08/14/2019-market-share-data-shows-canon-and-sony-growing-nikon-shrinking/ |archive-date=2021-04-16 |access-date=21 May 2021 |website=petapixel.com}}</ref> a semiconductor sales leader,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Top 20 semiconductor sales leaders for Q1 2016 |url=https://www.electronicspecifier.com/news/analysis/top-20-semiconductor-sales-leaders-for-q1-2016 |access-date=1 June 2020 |website=www.electronicspecifier.com}}</ref> and the world's [[Television#Market share|third-largest television manufacturer]] by sales.<ref name="market-share2">{{Cite web |title=Global LCD TV manufacturer market share from 2008 to 2017. |url=http://www.statista.com/statistics/267095/global-market-share-of-lcd-tv-manufacturers/ |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124004644/https://www.statista.com/statistics/267095/global-market-share-of-lcd-tv-manufacturers/ |archive-date=2020-11-24 |access-date=26 February 2017 |publisher=Statista}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Samsung tops global TV market for 15th consecutive year |url=https://www.flatpanelshd.com/news.php?subaction=showfull&id=1614155663 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210521185921/https://www.flatpanelshd.com/news.php?subaction=showfull&id=1614155663 |archive-date=2021-05-21 |access-date=21 May 2021 |website=FlatpanelsHD| date=2 February 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Alekseenko |first=Artem |date=4 March 2021 |title=LG and Sony Led OLED TV Gains in Advanced TV Market in Q4 |url=https://www.displaydaily.com/article/press-releases/lg-and-sony-led-oled-tv-gains-in-advanced-tv-market-in-q4 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624164434/https://www.displaydaily.com/article/press-releases/lg-and-sony-led-oled-tv-gains-in-advanced-tv-market-in-q4 |archive-date=2022-06-24 |access-date=21 May 2021 |website=DisplayDaily |language=en-gb}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2 May 2018 |title=How Samsung fell behind Sony and LG in the premium TV market |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-samsung-elec-tv-idUSKBN1I24K2 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119234739/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-samsung-elec-tv-idUSKBN1I24K2 |archive-date=2020-11-19 |access-date=1 June 2020 |work=Reuters |language=en}}</ref>

Although Sony is not part of a traditional ''[[keiretsu]]'', it has historical ties to the [[Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group]], dating back to the 1950s when it relied exclusively on Mitsui Bank for financing.<ref name=":1">"[https://www.sony.com/ja/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/SonyHistory/1-12.html Chapter 12: Morita's Eagerness Towards Direct Finance]". ''www.sony.com''. Retrieved 2024-07-14.</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=A Frog in a Well Knows Nothing of the Ocean: A History of Corporate Ownership in Japan |encyclopedia=A History of Corporate Governance around the World: Family Business Groups to Professional Managers |publisher=University of Chicago Press |url=https://www.nber.org/chapters/c10274.pdf |date=2005 |editor-last=Morck |editor-first=Randall K. |pages=367–466 |isbn=0-226-53680-7 |author=Morck, R. K. |author2=Nakamura, M.}}</ref> Sony is publicly traded on the [[Tokyo Stock Exchange]] (a component of the [[Nikkei 225]] and [[TOPIX]] Core30 indices) and also maintains [[American depositary receipts]] on the [[New York Stock Exchange]], where it has been listed since 1961.<ref name=":1" /> As of 2021, it ranked 88th on the ''[[Fortune Global 500|Fortune]]'' [[Fortune Global 500|Global 500]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony 2020 Global 500 – Fortune |url=https://fortune.com/company/sony/global500/ |magazine=[[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]] |access-date=2020-09-11}}</ref> and 57th on the 2023 ''[[Forbes Global 2000|Forbes]]'' [[Forbes Global 2000|Global 2000]] list.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/lists/global2000/?sh=51d599675ac0|title=The Global 2000 2023|website=Forbes|access-date=2024-02-07}}</ref>

==History==
{{Main|History of Sony}}

===Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo===
[[File:Sony-1945-rice-cooker-2.jpg|thumb|left|Sony's first product was an electric rice cooker in the late 1940s.<ref>{{cite news |title=It all began with a failed rice cooker – a glimpse at Sony's history |url=https://www.gsmarena.com/it_all_began_with_a_failed_rice_cooker__a_glimpse_at_sonys_history-blog-13661.php |website=GSMArena.com |date=December 21, 2023 |publisher=GSMArena.com |access-date=December 21, 2023 |archive-date=2023-12-21  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231221215707/https://www.gsmarena.com/it_all_began_with_a_failed_rice_cooker__a_glimpse_at_sonys_history-blog-13661.php |url-status=live }}</ref>]]
Sony began in the wake of World War II. In 1946, [[Masaru Ibuka]] started an electronics shop in Shirokiya,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sundberg |first=Stephen |date=18 September 2016 |title=Shirokiya Department Store, c. 1910–1940. &#124; Old Tokyo |url=http://www.oldtokyo.com/shirokiya-department-store/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120918035310/http://www.oldtokyo.com/shirokiya-dept-store.php |archive-date=18 September 2012 |access-date=5 November 2020 |website=Old Tokyo |language=en-us}}</ref> a department store building in the [[Nihonbashi]] area of [[Tokyo]]. The company started with a capital of ¥190,000<!--, or in USD $1,666.39{{clarification needed |date=July 2017}} // No true exchange rate before 1949. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_yen#Fixed_value_of_the_yen_to_the_U.S._dollar --><ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony Global – History |url=https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/ |access-date=7 July 2017 |website=www.sony.net |language=en |archive-date=2021-02-09  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209164449/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and a total of eight employees.<ref name="Nobuo">{{Cite news |last=Nobuo Abiko |date=26 March 1966 |title=Pioneering firm upsets Japan hiring: Pattern broken |page=14 |work=The Christian Science Monitor }}</ref> On 7 May 1946, Ibuka was joined by [[Akio Morita]] to establish a company called {{nihongo|Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo|東京通信工業|Tōkyō Tsūshin Kōgyō|Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corporation}}.<ref name="History">{{Cite web |title=Sony Global&nbsp;– Sony History |url=https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/SonyHistory/1-01.html |access-date=16 February 2007 |archive-date=2021-01-22  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122131354/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/SonyHistory/1-01.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The company built Japan's first [[tape recorder]], called the Type-G.<ref name=History/><ref>{{Cite news |last=Neate |first=Rupert |date=1 December 2014 |title=A history of Sony's successes and failures |work=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/dec/13/sony-successes-failures-inventions-walkman-music |access-date=22 April 2019 |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=2020-12-01  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201044041/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/dec/13/sony-successes-failures-inventions-walkman-music |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1958, the company changed its name to "Sony".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Chang |first=Sea-Jin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=blWb6tslZb8C&q=In+1958+sony&pg=PT19 |title=Sony vs Samsung: The Inside Story of the Electronics Giants' Battle For Global Supremacy |date=25 February 2011 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=9780470830444 |language=en |access-date=2020-10-20  |archive-date=2023-12-30  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231230025243/https://books.google.com/books?id=blWb6tslZb8C&q=In+1958+sony&pg=PT19#v=snippet&q=In%201958%20sony&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Name===
''Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo'' founders Morita and Ibuka realized that to achieve success and grow, their business had to expand to the global market, which required labeling their products with a short and easy [[brand]] name.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6ORVw3rodZAC&dq=%22Ibuka+and+Morita+decided+the+only+way%22&pg=PA41|title=Sony: The Company and Its Founders: The Company and Its Founders|first=Robert|last=Grayson|date=1 September 2012|publisher=ABDO Publishing Company|isbn=9781614801832|via=Google Books|access-date=2023-03-02 |archive-date=2023-04-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408100850/https://books.google.com/books?id=6ORVw3rodZAC&dq=%22Ibuka+and+Morita+decided+the+only+way%22&pg=PA41|url-status=live}}</ref> While looking for a romanized name, they at first strongly considered using their initials, TTK. The primary reason they did not is that the railway company [[Tokyu Corporation|Tokyo Kyuko]] was known as TTK.<ref name=History/> The company occasionally used the syllabic acronym "Totsuko" in Japan, but during his visit to the United States, Morita discovered that Americans had trouble pronouncing that name. Another early name that was tried out for a while was "Tokyo Teletech" until [[Akio Morita]] discovered that there was an American company already using Teletech as a brand name.<ref>''[[Made in Japan (biography)|Made in Japan]]'' – Akio Morita and Sony (pg. 76) by Akio Morita with [müzik indir] [http://www.indiristan.net/ müzik indir] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117181638/http://www.indiristan.net/ |date=17 January 2021}} Edwin M. Rheingold and Mitsuko Shimomura, Signet Books, 1986</ref>

The name "Sony" was chosen for the brand as a mix of two words: one was the [[Latin]] word "''[[wikt:sonus|sonus]]''", which is the root of sonic and sound, and the other was "''[[wikt:sonny|sonny]]''", a common slang term used in 1950s America to call a young boy.<ref name="SonyHistory">[http://www.sony.co.jp/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/ Sony Corporate History (Japanese)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090514124709/http://www.sony.co.jp/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/ |date=2009-05-14}}. Sony.co.jp. Retrieved 7 July 2011.</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Nathan |first1=John |title=Sony : the private life |date=1999 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin |location=Boston, Mass. |isbn=0618126945 |page=52}}</ref> In 1950s Japan, "sonny boys" was a [[loan word]] in Japanese, which connoted smart and presentable young men, which [[Akio Morita]] and [[Masaru Ibuka]] considered themselves to be.<ref name="SonyHistory" />

The first Sony-branded product, the [[TR-55]] [[transistor radio]], appeared in 1955, but the company name did not change to Sony until January 1958.<ref>[http://www.sony.co.uk/article/id/1060176719725 Sony.co.uk. About Sony. ''The History of the Sony Corporation''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131128040732/http://www.sony.co.uk/article/id/1060176719725 |date=28 November 2013 }}. Sony.co.uk. Retrieved 7 July 2011.</ref>

At the time of the change, it was extremely unusual for a Japanese company to use [[Romanization of Japanese|Roman letters]] to spell its name instead of writing it in [[kanji]]. The move was not without opposition: TTK's principal bank at the time, [[Mitsui]], had strong feelings about the name. They pushed for a name such as Sony Electronic Industries, or Sony Teletech. Akio Morita was firm, however, as he did not want the company name tied to any particular industry. Eventually, both Ibuka and Mitsui Bank's chairman gave their approval.<ref name=History/>

===Globalization===
According to Schiffer, Sony's TR-63 radio "cracked open the U.S. market and launched the new industry of consumer microelectronics."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Focusing on the design of pocket transistor radios manufactured during the 1950s & 1960s! |url=https://www.jamesbutters.com/ |access-date=16 January 2020 |website=Focusing on the design of pocket transistor radios manufactured during the 1950s & 1960s! |archive-date=2021-01-25  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125110756/https://www.jamesbutters.com/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> By the mid-1950s, American teens had begun buying portable transistor radios in huge numbers, helping to propel the fledgling industry from an estimated 100,000 units in 1955 to 5&nbsp;million units by the end of 1968.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Strategy Study: How Sony Became The Ultimate Pivoting Success Story |url=https://www.cascade.app/studies/sony-strategy-study |access-date=2024-05-30 |website=www.cascade.app |language=en |archive-date=2024-05-30  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240530120504/https://www.cascade.app/studies/sony-strategy-study |url-status=live }}</ref>

Sony co-founder Akio Morita founded Sony Corporation of America in 1960.<ref name="Nobuo" /> In the process, he was struck by the mobility of employees between American companies, which was unheard of in Japan at that time.<ref name="Nobuo" /> When he returned to Japan, he encouraged experienced, middle-aged employees of other companies to reevaluate their careers and consider joining Sony.<ref name="Nobuo" /> The company filled many positions in this manner, and inspired other Japanese companies to do the same.<ref name="Nobuo" /> Moreover, Sony played a major role in the development of Japan as a powerful exporter during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s,<ref name="Christian">Christian, Caryl, and With Hideko Takayama and Kay Itoi in Tokyo, George Wehrfritz in Hong Kong, John Sparks and Michael Hastings in, New York. "Sony is Not Japan; the Appointment of a Foreign CEO is a Sign of how Far the Iconic Company has Fallen in the Japanese Corporate Elite." Newsweek 21 March 2005: 30-. ProQuest Research Library. Web. 26 May 2012.</ref> supplying the [[United States Armed Forces|U.S. Military]] with bomb parts used in the [[Vietnam War]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Immerwahr |first=Daniel |date=2019 |title=How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States |edition=First |location=New York |publisher=Straus, and Giroux Farrar |isbn=978-0-374-71512-0 |oclc=1086608761 |quote=Deming's beatification spoke to the centrality of the U.S. military in Japan's economic growth. The more that military fought, the more Japanese firms profited. The Korean War had been a godsend. The Vietnam War helped, too. The men who fought it drank Kirin beer, carried Nikon cameras, rode Honda motorbikes, and dropped bombs with Sony parts.}}</ref> It also helped to significantly improve American perceptions of "made in Japan" products.<ref name="Lohr">Lohr, Steve. "Hard-Hit Sony Girds for a Fight in the American Electronics Market." New York Times: A.8. New York Times. 14 August 1983. Web. 26 May 2012.</ref> Known for its production quality, Sony was able to charge above-market prices for its consumer electronics and resisted lowering prices.<ref name="Lohr" />

In 1971, Masaru Ibuka handed the position of president over to his co-founder Akio Morita. Sony began [[Sony Life|a life insurance company]] in 1979, one of its many peripheral businesses. Amid a global recession in the early 1980s, electronics sales dropped and the company was forced to cut prices.<ref name="Lohr" /> Sony's profits fell sharply. "It's over for Sony", one analyst concluded. "The company's best days are behind it."<ref name="Lohr" />

[[File:Advertising For Sony Transistor Radios (TR-6, TR-63 & TR-72) In The Vancouver Sun Newspaper, July 26, 1957 (46264879332).jpg|left|thumb|Advertising for Sony transistor radios (TR-6, TR-63 & TR-72), 1957]]

Around that time, [[Norio Ohga]] took up the role of president. He encouraged the development of the compact disc (CD) in the 1970s and 1980s, and of the [[PlayStation]] in the early 1990s. Ohga went on to purchase [[Columbia Records|CBS Records]] in 1988 and [[Columbia Pictures]] in 1989, greatly expanding Sony's media presence. Ohga would succeed Morita as chief executive officer in 1989.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Digication e-Portfolio :: Navaldeep Singh :: Investigate and Analyze the company's History and Growth |url=https://stonybrook.digication.com/navaldeep_singh/Investigate_and_Analyze_the_company_s_History_and_ |access-date=4 June 2017 |website=stonybrook.digication.com |language=en |archive-date=2020-10-25  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201025232223/https://stonybrook.digication.com/navaldeep_singh/Investigate_and_Analyze_the_company_s_History_and_ |url-status=live }}</ref>{{citation needed |date=November 2014}}

Under the vision of co-founder Akio Morita<ref name="Fackler">Fackler, Martin. "Cutting Sony, a Corporate Octopus, Back to a Rational Size." New York Times: C.1. New York Times. 29 May 2006. Web. 27 May 2012.</ref> and his successors, the company had aggressively expanded into new businesses.<ref name="Christian" /> Part of its motivation for doing so was the pursuit of "convergence", linking film, music and digital electronics via the Internet.<ref name="Christian" /> This expansion proved unrewarding and unprofitable,<ref name="Christian" /> threatening Sony's ability to charge a premium on its products<ref name="Fackler" /> as well as its brand name.<ref name="Fackler" /> In 2005, [[Howard Stringer]] replaced [[Nobuyuki Idei]] as chief executive officer, marking the first time that a foreigner had run a major Japanese electronics firm. Stringer helped to reinvigorate the company's struggling media businesses, encouraging blockbusters such as ''[[Spider-Man (2002 film)|Spider-Man]]'' while cutting 9,000 jobs.<ref name="Christian" /> He hoped to sell off peripheral business and focus the company again on electronics.<ref name="Fackler" /> Furthermore, he aimed to increase cooperation between business units,<ref name="Fackler" /> which he described as "silos" operating in isolation from one another.<ref name="Nakamoto" /> In a bid to provide a unified brand for its global operations, Sony introduced a slogan known as "make.believe" in 2009.<ref name=":0" />{{citation needed |date=November 2014}}

[[File:Vintage Sony Model TR-730 Transistor Radio, Broadcast Band Only (MW), 7 Transistors, Made In Japan, Circa 1960 (15836828772).jpg|180px|thumb|A Sony TR-730 transistor radio made in Japan, {{Circa|1960}}]]

Despite some successes, the company faced continued struggles in the mid- to late-2000s.<ref name="Christian" /> In 2012, [[Kazuo Hirai]] was promoted to president and CEO, replacing Stringer. Shortly thereafter, Hirai outlined his company-wide initiative, named "One Sony" to revive Sony from years of financial losses and bureaucratic management structure, which proved difficult for former CEO Stringer to accomplish, partly due to differences in business culture and native languages between Stringer and some of Sony's Japanese divisions and subsidiaries. Hirai outlined three major areas of focus for Sony's electronics business, which include imaging technology, gaming and mobile technology, as well as a focus on reducing the major losses from the television business.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jeff Blagdon |date=27 March 2012 |title=Sony reorganizes into 'One Sony', prioritizes digital imaging, gaming and mobile |url=https://www.theverge.com/2012/3/27/2905412/sony-management-structure-change-announcement |access-date=10 July 2013 |website=The Verge |archive-date=2021-02-10  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210210042021/https://www.theverge.com/2012/3/27/2905412/sony-management-structure-change-announcement |url-status=live }}</ref>

In February 2014, Sony announced the sale of its [[Vaio]] PC division to a new corporation owned by investment fund [[Japan Industrial Partners]] and spinning its TV division into its own corporation as to make it more nimble to turn the unit around from past losses totaling $7.8&nbsp;billion over a decade.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Knight |first1=Sophie |first2=Reiji |last2=Murai |date=6 February 2014 |title=As losses mount, Sony's Hirai seeks cure for TV business in spinoff |work=Reuters |location=Tokyo |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-results-idUSBREA150AK20140206 |access-date=11 February 2014 |archive-date=2021-08-14  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210814232934/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-results-idUSBREA150AK20140206 |url-status=live }}</ref> Later that month, they announced that they would be closing 20 stores.<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 February 2014 |title=Sony to shutter two-thirds of its US stores |work=Engadget |url=https://www.engadget.com/2014/02/26/sony-stores-closing/ |first1=Ben |last1=Gilbert |access-date=27 February 2014 |archive-date=2019-02-14  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190214134335/https://www.engadget.com/2014/02/26/sony-stores-closing/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In April, the company announced that they would be selling 9.5&nbsp;million shares in [[Square Enix]] (roughly 8.2 percent of the game company's total shares) in a deal worth approximately $48&nbsp;million.<ref name="SQEXsale">{{Cite web |last=Makuch, Eddie |date=16 April 2014 |title=PS4 company Sony to sell its entire stake in Square Enix, valued at around $47 million |url=http://www.gamespot.com/articles/ps4-company-sony-to-sell-its-entire-stake-in-square-enix-valued-at-around-47-million/1100-6419024/ |access-date=16 April 2014 |website=[[GameSpot]] |archive-date=2020-11-11  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111194239/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/ps4-company-sony-to-sell-its-entire-stake-in-square-enix-valued-at-around-47-million/1100-6419024/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In May 2014 the company announced it was forming two joint ventures with [[Shanghai Oriental Pearl Group]] to manufacture and market Sony's [[PlayStation]] game consoles and associated software in China.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 May 2014 |title=Sony, Shanghai Oriental Pearl to set up China PlayStation JVs |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-shanghaiorientalpearl-playstatio-idUSBREA4P01320140526 |website=Reuters |access-date=2021-07-05  |archive-date=2021-08-18  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210818205444/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-shanghaiorientalpearl-playstatio-idUSBREA4P01320140526 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2015, Sony purchased Toshiba's image sensor business.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 October 2015 |title=Toshiba sells sensor business to Sony, overhauls chip unit |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2015/10/28/toshiba-sells-sensor-business-to-sony-overhauls-chip-unit.html |website=CNBC |access-date=2021-01-25  |archive-date=2021-02-01  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210201213946/https://www.cnbc.com/2015/10/28/toshiba-sells-sensor-business-to-sony-overhauls-chip-unit.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

{{multiple image
 | align     = left
 | direction = vertical
 | width     = 200
 | image1    = Sony Style.jpg
 | caption1  = Sony Style store in Bangkok, Thailand
 | image2    = MarkvilleSonyStore.JPG
 | caption2  = Sony Store (after rebranding from Sony Style<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sonyreconsidered.com/sony-rebrands-retail-stores-kills-off-sony-style-and-launches-a-new-store-initiative-509ae921ef09|title=Sony Rebrands Retail Stores, Kills off Sony Style and Launches a New Store Initiative|first=Sohrab|last=Osati|date=4 June 2017|website=Medium|access-date=2022-05-09 |archive-date=2023-12-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231230025210/https://sonyreconsidered.com/sony-rebrands-retail-stores-kills-off-sony-style-and-launches-a-new-store-initiative-509ae921ef09?gi=2e168a9374fe|url-status=live}}</ref>) in [[Markville Shopping Centre]], Canada
}}

It was reported in December 2016 by multiple news outlets that Sony was considering restructuring its U.S. operations by merging its TV & film business, Sony Pictures Entertainment, with its gaming business, Sony Interactive Entertainment. According to the reports, such a restructuring would have placed Sony Pictures under Sony Interactive's CEO, Andrew House, though House would not have taken over day-to-day operations of the film studio.<ref name="tvfilmgaming">{{Cite news |last=Aldrich |first=Rachel |date=12 December 2016 |title=Why would Sony merge its gaming and film units? |language=en |work=TheStreet |url=https://www.thestreet.com/story/13922321/1/why-would-sony-merge-its-gaming-and-film-units.html |access-date=2018-12-24  |archive-date=2019-11-18  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191118054436/https://www.thestreet.com/story/13922321/1/why-would-sony-merge-its-gaming-and-film-units.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Atkinson |first=Claire |date=12 December 2016 |title=Sony considers merging gaming and film divisions |language=en |work=New York Post |url=https://nypost.com/2016/12/11/sony-considers-merging-gaming-and-film-divisions/ |access-date=2018-12-24  |archive-date=2020-11-08  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108091437/http://nypost.com/2016/12/11/sony-considers-merging-gaming-and-film-divisions/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Cooke |first=Chris |title=Revamp of Sony's entertainment business could more closely align Sony Music with Sony/ATV {{!}} Complete Music Update |url=http://www.completemusicupdate.com/article/revamp-of-sonys-entertainment-business-could-more-closely-align-sony-music-with-sonyatv/ |access-date=2018-12-24  |archive-date=2020-10-13  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201013174949/https://completemusicupdate.com/article/revamp-of-sonys-entertainment-business-could-more-closely-align-sony-music-with-sonyatv/ |url-status=live }}</ref> According to one report, Sony was set to make a final decision on the possibility of the merger of the TV, film, & gaming businesses by the end of its fiscal year in March of the following year (2017).<ref name="tvfilmgaming" />

In 2017, Sony sold its [[lithium-ion battery]] business to [[Murata Manufacturing]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Murata to pour $450m into Sony battery ops after purchase |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Murata-to-pour-450m-into-Sony-battery-ops-after-purchase |website=Nikkei Asian Review |access-date=2020-04-07  |archive-date=2021-02-10  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210210122618/https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Murata-to-pour-450m-into-Sony-battery-ops-after-purchase |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Murata Manufacturing and Sony Sign Definitive Agreement for the Transfer of Battery Business &#124; Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. |url=https://corporate.murata.com/en-us/about/newsroom/news/company/general/2016/1031 |website=corporate.murata.com |access-date=2020-04-07  |archive-date=2020-10-28  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028141939/https://corporate.murata.com/en-us/about/newsroom/news/company/general/2016/1031 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=19 July 2017 |title=Sony to complete sale of battery business to Murata in September |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/07/19/business/corporate-business/sony-complete-sale-battery-business-murata-september/ |via=Japan Times Online |access-date=2020-04-07  |archive-date=2020-11-26  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126233347/https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/07/19/business/corporate-business/sony-complete-sale-battery-business-murata-september/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2019, Sony merged its mobile, TV and camera businesses.<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 March 2019 |title=[Update: Mass job cuts expected] Sony to merge all consumer electronics divisions after mobile loses nearly a billion dollars in a year |url=https://www.androidpolice.com/2019/03/29/sony-to-merge-all-consumer-electronics-divisions-as-if-we-wont-notice-mobile-losing-nearly-a-billion-dollars/ |access-date=2020-04-07  |archive-date=2020-10-26  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026041756/https://www.androidpolice.com/2019/03/29/sony-to-merge-all-consumer-electronics-divisions-as-if-we-wont-notice-mobile-losing-nearly-a-billion-dollars/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Sony Merges Electronics Divisions, Hiding Staggering Mobile Losses – ExtremeTech |url=https://www.extremetech.com/mobile/288598-sony-merges-electronics-divisions-hiding-staggering-mobile-losses |newspaper=Extremetech |date=28 March 2019 |last1=Whitwam |first1=Ryan |access-date=2020-04-07  |archive-date=2020-10-23  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023221923/https://www.extremetech.com/mobile/288598-sony-merges-electronics-divisions-hiding-staggering-mobile-losses |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 1 April 2020, Sony Electronics Corporation was established as an intermediate holding company to own and oversee its electronics and IT solutions businesses.

On 19 May 2020, the company announced that it would change its name to Sony Group Corporation as of 1 April 2021. Subsequently, Sony Electronics Corporation would be renamed to Sony Corporation.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=Announcement of New Sony Group Organizational Structure |date=1 May 2020 |url=https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/202005/20-039E/ |access-date=19 May 2020 |agency=Sony Corporation |archive-date=2020-10-29  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029044607/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/202005/20-039E/ |url-status=live }}</ref> On the same day the company announced that it would turn [[Sony Financial Holdings]] (currently Sony Financial Group), of which Sony already owns 65.06% of shares, to a wholly owned subsidiary through a takeover bid.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=Announcement Regarding Commencement of Tender Offer for Shares Etc, of Sony Financial Holdings Inc. (Securities Code: 8729) |date=1 May 2020 |url=https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/news/20200519_02E.pdf |access-date=21 May 2020 |agency=Sony Corporation |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807071655/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/news/20200519_02E.pdf |archive-date=7 August 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 1 April 2021, Sony Corporation was renamed Sony Group Corporation. On the same day, Sony Mobile Communications Inc. absorbed Sony Electronics Corporation, Sony Imaging Products & Solutions Inc., and Sony Home Entertainment & Sound Products Inc. and changed its trade name to Sony Corporation.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=Announcement of Decision Regarding Company Split (Small-scale Company Split) of Electronics Products & Solutions Business|date=17 November 2020 |url=https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/IR/news/20201117_01E.pdf |access-date=13 July 2021 |agency=Sony Corporation |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210713015240/https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/IR/news/20201117_01E.pdf |archive-date=13 July 2021 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Formats and technologies==
{{Further|List of Sony trademarks}}

Sony has historically been notable for creating its own in-house standards for new recording and storage technologies, instead of adopting those of other manufacturers and standards bodies, while its success in the early years owes to a smooth capitalization on the [[Digital Compact Cassette]] standard introduced by [[Philips]],<ref>{{Cite web|date=17 March 2021|title=Lou Ottens obituary|url=http://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/mar/17/lou-ottens-obituary|access-date=7 September 2021|website=The Guardian|language=en|archive-date=2021-09-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210907145655/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/mar/17/lou-ottens-obituary|url-status=live}}</ref> with which Sony went on to enjoy a decades-long technological relationship in various areas. Sony (either alone or with partners) has introduced several of the most popular recording formats, including the 3.5-inch [[floppy disk]], [[compact disc]] and [[Blu-ray]] disc.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ma'arif |first=Nelly Nailaite |year=2008 |chapter=15 |title=The Power of Marketing: Practitioner Perspectives in Asia |publisher=Penerbit Salemba}}</ref>

===Video recording===
Sony introduced [[U-matic]], the world's first [[videocassette]] format, in 1971, but the standard was unpopular for domestic use due to the high price.<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 January 2018 |title=U-matic (1971 – 1990s) |url=https://obsoletemedia.org/u-matic/ |access-date=5 August 2020 |website=Museum of Obsolete Media |language=en-GB |archive-date=2020-10-31  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031103303/https://obsoletemedia.org/u-matic/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The company subsequently launched the [[Betamax]] format in 1975.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Curtis |first=Sophie |date=10 November 2015 |title=Sony is finally killing off Betamax video tapes |language=en-GB |work=Daily Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/sony/11986020/Sony-is-finally-killing-off-Betamax-video-tapes.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/sony/11986020/Sony-is-finally-killing-off-Betamax-video-tapes.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=4 January 2019 |issn=0307-1235}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Sony was involved in the [[videotape format war]] of the early 1980s, when they were marketing the [[Betamax]] system for video cassette recorders against the [[VHS]] format developed by [[JVC]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=The History of Format Wars and How Sony Finally Won... For Now |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2016/07/how-sony-finally-won-the-format-wars.html |access-date=4 January 2019 |website=pastemagazine.com |date=29 July 2016 |language=en |archive-date=2019-04-01  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401003415/https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2016/07/how-sony-finally-won-the-format-wars.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In the end, VHS gained critical mass in the marketbase and became the worldwide standard for consumer VCRs.<ref name=":2" />

Betamax is, for all practical purposes, an obsolete format. Sony's professional-oriented [[component video]] format called [[Betacam]], which was derived from Betamax, was used until 2016 when Sony announced it was stopping production of all remaining 1/2-inch video tape recorders and players, including the Digital Betacam format.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 May 2014 |title=Digital Betacam (1993–2016) |url=https://obsoletemedia.org/digital-betacam/ |access-date=7 January 2019 |website=Museum of Obsolete Media |language=en-GB |archive-date=2020-06-12  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200612113414/https://obsoletemedia.org/digital-betacam/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1985, Sony launched their [[Handycam]] products and the [[8 mm video format|Video8 format]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=27 May 2014 |title=Video8 (1985 – 2000s) |url=https://obsoletemedia.org/video8/ |access-date=4 January 2019 |website=Museum of Obsolete Media |language=en-GB |archive-date=2020-12-10  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201210165127/https://obsoletemedia.org/video8/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Video8 and the follow-on hi-band [[8 mm video format|Hi8]] format became popular in the consumer camcorder market. In 1987 Sony launched the 4&nbsp;mm DAT or [[Digital Audio Tape]] as a new digital audio tape standard.<ref>{{Cite web |date=10 October 2014 |title=What's DAT Sound? |url=https://blogs.library.duke.edu/bitstreams/2014/10/10/dat-sound/ |access-date=4 January 2019 |website=Bitstreams: The Digital Collections Blog |language=en-US |archive-date=2020-10-30  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030143758/https://blogs.library.duke.edu/bitstreams/2014/10/10/dat-sound/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Visual display ===
Sony held a patent for its proprietary [[Trinitron]] until 1996.

Sony introduced the Triluminos Display, the company's proprietary color reproduction enhancing technology, in 2004, featured in the world's first [[LED-backlit LCD]] televisions.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony introduces first televisions to feature LED backlights |url=https://www.ledsmagazine.com/specialty-ssl/backlighting-signs-displays/article/16701260/sony-introduces-first-televisions-to-feature-led-backlights |access-date=6 August 2020 |website=www.ledsmagazine.com |date=19 August 2004 |archive-date=2021-02-18  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210218141258/https://www.ledsmagazine.com/specialty-ssl/backlighting-signs-displays/article/16701260/sony-introduces-first-televisions-to-feature-led-backlights |url-status=live }}</ref> It was widely used in other Sony's products as well, including computer monitors, laptops, and smartphones.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 June 2013 |title=The Xperia Z Ultra's Triluminos and X-Reality Engine technologies explained |url=https://www.androidauthority.com/xperia-z-ultra-triluminos-x-reality-234908/ |access-date=6 August 2020 |website=Android Authority |language=en-US |archive-date=2020-09-21  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200921103140/https://www.androidauthority.com/xperia-z-ultra-triluminos-x-reality-234908/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2013, Sony released a new line of televisions with an improved version of the technology, which incorporated [[quantum dot]]s in the backlight system. It was the first commercial use of quantum dots.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Quantum Dots Get Commercial Debut in More Colorful Sony TVs |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/2013/01/11/180532/quantum-dots-get-commercial-debut-in-more-colorful-sony-tvs/ |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=MIT Technology Review |language=en |archive-date=2020-11-24  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124183849/https://www.technologyreview.com/2013/01/11/180532/quantum-dots-get-commercial-debut-in-more-colorful-sony-tvs/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Blagdon |first=Jeff |date=16 January 2013 |title=Sony's new Triluminos TVs pursue vibrant hues with quantum dots |url=https://www.theverge.com/2013/1/16/3881546/sonys-new-triluminous-tvs-pursue-vibrant-hues-with-quantum-dots |access-date=6 August 2020 |website=The Verge |language=en |archive-date=2020-11-11  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111222753/http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/16/3881546/sonys-new-triluminous-tvs-pursue-vibrant-hues-with-quantum-dots |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2012, the company revealed a prototype of an ultrafine RGB [[Light-emitting diode|LED]] display, which it calls the [[Crystal LED]] Display.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony fights the OLED future with new 'Crystal LED' prototype (Update: Hands-on!) |url=https://www.engadget.com/2012-01-09-sony-fights-the-oled-future-with-new-crystal-led-prototype.html |access-date=6 August 2020 |website=Engadget |date=19 July 2019 |language=en |archive-date=2021-01-25  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125194647/https://www.engadget.com/2012-01-09-sony-fights-the-oled-future-with-new-crystal-led-prototype.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Audio recording===
Sony used the Compact Cassette format in many of its tape recorders and players, including the [[Walkman]], the world's first portable music player.<ref name=":5">{{Cite news |last=Haire |first=Meaghan |date=1 July 2009 |title=The Walkman |language=en-US |magazine=Time |url=http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1907884,00.html |access-date=17 January 2019 |issn=0040-781X |archive-date=2021-01-28  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128084123/http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1907884,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony introduced the [[MiniDisc]] format in 1992 as an alternative to [[Philips]] DCC or [[Digital Compact Cassette]] and as a successor to the Compact Cassette.<ref>{{Cite web |date=16 November 2013 |title=MiniDisc (1992–2013) |url=https://obsoletemedia.org/minidisc/ |access-date=17 January 2019 |website=Museum of Obsolete Media |language=en-GB |archive-date=2020-11-08  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108025210/https://obsoletemedia.org/minidisc/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Since the introduction of MiniDisc, Sony has attempted to promote its own audio compression technologies under the [[Adaptive Transform Acoustic Coding|ATRAC]] brand, against the more widely used MP3. Until late 2004, Sony's [[Walkman#Network Walkman|Network Walkman]] line of digital portable music players did not support the MP3 standard natively.

In 2004, Sony built upon the [[MiniDisc]] format by releasing [[HiMD|Hi-MD]]. Hi-MD allows the playback and recording of audio on newly introduced 1 GB Hi-MD discs in addition to playback and recording on regular MiniDiscs. In addition to saving audio on the discs, Hi-MD allows the storage of computer files such as documents, videos and photos.

===Audio encoding===
In 1993, Sony challenged the industry standard [[Dolby Digital]] 5.1 surround sound format with a newer and more advanced proprietary motion picture digital audio format called [[Sony Dynamic Digital Sound|SDDS]] (Sony Dynamic Digital Sound).<ref name=":3">{{cite web |title=Sony Digital Dynamic Sound |url=https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~clamen/misc/movies/sdds-post.html |access-date=1 February 2019 |website=www.cs.cmu.edu |archive-date=2016-08-07  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807121703/https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~clamen/misc/movies/sdds-post.html |url-status=live }}</ref> This format employed eight channels (7.1) of audio opposed to just six used in Dolby Digital 5.1 at the time.<ref name=":3" /> Ultimately, SDDS has been vastly overshadowed by the preferred DTS ([[DTS (sound system)|Digital Theatre System]]) and Dolby Digital standards in the motion picture industry. SDDS was solely developed for use in the theatre circuit; Sony never intended to develop a home theatre version of SDDS.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ma'arif |first=Nelly Nailaite |title=The Power of Marketing: Practitioner Perspectives in Asia |date=2008 |publisher=Penerbit Salemba Empat |isbn=9789796914456 |oclc=968144111}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Why isn't SDDS in the consumer market? |url=https://www.hometheaterforum.com/community/threads/why-isnt-sdds-in-the-consumer-market.183176/ |access-date=1 February 2019 |website=Blu-ray Movie Discussion, Expert Reviews & News |date=5 July 2004 |language=en-US |archive-date=2020-11-24  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124043456/https://www.hometheaterforum.com/community/threads/why-isnt-sdds-in-the-consumer-market.183176/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Sony and [[Philips]] jointly developed the Sony-Philips digital interface format ([[S/PDIF]]) and the high-fidelity audio system [[Super Audio CD|SACD]]. The latter became entrenched in a format war with [[DVD-Audio]]. Still, neither gained a major foothold with the general public. CDs had been preferred by consumers because of the ubiquitous presence of CD drives in consumer devices until the early 2000s when the iPod and streaming services became available.<ref>{{cite web |last=Waniata |first=Ryan |date=7 February 2018 |title=The Life and Times of the Late, Great CD |url=https://www.digitaltrends.com/features/the-history-of-the-cds-rise-and-fall/ |access-date=1 February 2019 |website=digitaltrends.com |archive-date=2021-01-12  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112023950/https://www.digitaltrends.com/features/the-history-of-the-cds-rise-and-fall/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2015, Sony introduced [[LDAC (codec)|LDAC]], a [[Proprietary software|proprietary]] [[Audio codec|audio coding]] technology which allows streaming [[high-resolution audio]] over [[Bluetooth]] connections at up to 990&nbsp;kbit/s at 32 bit/96&nbsp;kHz. Sony also contributed it as part of the [[Android Open Source Project]] starting from [[Android 8.0]] "[[Android version history#Android 8.0 Oreo (API 26)|Oreo]]", enabling every OEM to integrate this standard into their own Android devices freely. However the ''decoder'' library is [[Proprietary software|proprietary]], so receiving devices require licenses. On 17 September 2019, the [[Japan Audio Society|Japan Audio Society (JAS)]] certified LDAC with their [[Japan Audio Society#Hi-Res Audio Wireless Certification|Hi-Res Audio Wireless]] certification. Currently the only codecs with the Hi-Res Audio Wireless certification are LDAC and [[LHDC (codec)|LHDC]], another competing standard.

===Optical storage===
[[File:Sony BD-RE 200GB front side 20080119.jpg|thumb|Front side of a Sony 200GB Blu-ray disc]]
Sony demonstrated an optical digital audio disc in 1977 and soon joined hands with Philips, another major contender for the storage technology, to establish a worldwide standard.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The history of the CD – The beginning – Research |url=https://www.philips.com/a-w/research/technologies/cd/beginning.html |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=Philips |language=en |archive-date=2023-05-06  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230506083717/https://www.philips.com/a-w/about/innovation/research.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1983, the two companies jointly announced the [[compact disc|Compact Disc]] (CD). In 1984, Sony launched the [[Discman]] series, an expansion of the Walkman brand to portable CD players. Sony began to improve performance and capacity of the novel format. It launched write-once [[optical disc]]s (WO) and [[Magneto-optical drive|magneto-optical discs]] which were around 125MB size for the specific use of archival data storage, in 1986 and 1988 respectively.<ref>A</ref>

In the early 1990s, two high-density optical storage standards were being developed: one was the MultiMedia Compact Disc (MMCD), backed by Philips and Sony, and the other was the Super Density Disc (SD), supported by [[Toshiba]] and many others. Philips and Sony abandoned their MMCD format and agreed upon Toshiba's SD format with only one modification. The unified disc format was called [[DVD]] and was introduced in 1997.

Sony was one of the leading developers of the [[Blu-ray]] optical disc format, the newest standard for disc-based content delivery. The first Blu-ray players became commercially available in 2006. The format emerged as the standard for HD media over the competing format, Toshiba's [[HD DVD]], after a two-year-long [[high-definition optical disc format war]].

Sony's [[Laser communication in space|laser communication]] devices for [[small satellite]]s rely on the technologies developed for the company's optical disc products.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony to launch space business |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Sony-to-launch-space-business |access-date=21 April 2018 |website=Nikkei Asian Review |archive-date=2020-11-15  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201115132837/https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Sony-to-launch-space-business |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Disk storage===
In 1983, Sony introduced 90&nbsp;mm micro diskettes, better known as {{convert|3.5|in|mm|adj=on}} [[floppy disk]]s, which it had developed at a time when there were 4" floppy disks, and many variations from different companies, to replace the then on-going 5.25" floppy disks. Sony had great success and the format became dominant. 3.5" floppy disks gradually became obsolete as they were replaced by current media formats. Sony held more than a 70 percent share of the market when it decided to pull the plug on the format in 2010.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ma'arif |first=Nelly Nailatie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oc_0AkhysO0C&q=Sony+had+great+success+and+the+format+became+dominant.+3.5%22+floppy+disks+gradually+became+obsolete+as+they+were+replaced+by+current+media+formats&pg=PT194 |title=Power of Marketing |date=2008 |publisher=Penerbit Salemba |isbn=9789796914456 |language=en |access-date=2020-10-20  |archive-date=2023-12-30  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231230025207/https://books.google.com/books?id=oc_0AkhysO0C&q=Sony+had+great+success+and+the+format+became+dominant.+3.5%22+floppy+disks+gradually+became+obsolete+as+they+were+replaced+by+current+media+formats&pg=PT194#v=snippet&q=Sony%20had%20great%20success%20and%20the%20format%20became%20dominant.%203.5%22%20floppy%20disks%20gradually%20became%20obsolete%20as%20they%20were%20replaced%20by%20current%20media%20formats&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Floppy disk history: The evolution of personal computing |url=https://www.hpe.com/us/en/insights/articles/floppy-disk-history-the-evolution-of-personal-computing-1804.html |access-date=2020-08-03  |archive-date=2021-02-06  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206204632/https://www.hpe.com/us/en/insights/articles/floppy-disk-history-the-evolution-of-personal-computing-1804.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Sony still develops [[Magnetic-tape data storage|magnetic tape]] storage technologies along with [[IBM]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Anthony |first=Sebastian |date=2017-08-02 |title=IBM and Sony cram up to 330 terabytes into tiny tape cartridge |url=https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/08/ibm-and-sony-cram-up-to-330tb-into-tiny-tape-cartridge/ |access-date=2023-12-20 |website=Ars Technica |language=en-us |archive-date=2023-05-27  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230527023718/https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/08/ibm-and-sony-cram-up-to-330tb-into-tiny-tape-cartridge/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and are one of only two manufacturers of [[Linear Tape-Open]] (LTO) cartridges.

===Flash memory===
In 1998, Sony launched the [[Memory Stick]] format, the [[flash memory]] cards for use in Sony lines of digital cameras and portable music players. It has seen little support outside of Sony's own products, with [[Secure Digital card]]s (SD) commanding considerably greater popularity. Sony has made updates to the Memory Stick format with [[Memory Stick#Memory Stick Duo and PRO Duo|Memory Stick Duo]] and [[Memory Stick Micro]]. The company has also released [[USB flash drive]] products, branded under the Micro Vault line.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/sony-micro-vault-enabling-portable-bragability-for-gran-turismo-4-gamers|title=Sony MICRO VAULT – enabling portable bragability for Gran Turismo 4 gamers!|website=GamesIndustry.biz|date=3 March 2005|access-date=2021-09-17 |archive-date=2021-09-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210917152040/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/sony-micro-vault-enabling-portable-bragability-for-gran-turismo-4-gamers|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Communication===
Sony introduced [[FeliCa]], a contactless IC card technology primarily used in [[contactless payment]], as a result of the company's joint development and commercialization of [[near-field communication|Near-Field Communication]] (NFC) with Philips. The standard is largely offered in two forms, either chips embedded in smartphones or plastic cards with chips embedded in them. Sony plans to implement this technology in train systems across Asia.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Alpeyev |first1=Pavel |last2=Huang |first2=Grace |date=15 October 2015 |title=Sony's Answer to Apple Pay Is Laying Tracks for Asian Expansion |publisher=Bloomberg Business |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-16/sony-s-answer-to-apple-pay-is-laying-tracks-for-asian-expansion |access-date=19 October 2015 |archive-date=2020-11-20  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120072420/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-16/sony-s-answer-to-apple-pay-is-laying-tracks-for-asian-expansion |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2019, Sony launched the ELTRES, the company's proprietary low-power wide-area wireless communication ([[LPWAN]]) standard.<ref>{{cite web |date=30 May 2019 |title=Sony unveils LPWA IoT communication module |url=https://www.eenewsautomotive.com/news/sony-unveils-lpwa-iot-communication-module |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=eeNews Automotive |language=en |archive-date=2020-10-23  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023015553/https://www.eenewsautomotive.com/news/sony-unveils-lpwa-iot-communication-module |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Video gaming===
Until 1991, Sony had little direct involvement with the video game industry. The company supplied components for other consoles, such as the sound chip for the [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|Super Famicom]] from [[Nintendo]], and operated a video game studio, [[Sony Imagesoft]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=DeMaria|first1=Rusel|last2=Wilson|first2=Johnny L.|title=High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games|date=2003|publisher=McGraw-Hill/Osborne|location=New York|isbn=0-07-223172-6|page=376|edition=2}}</ref> As part of a joint project between Nintendo and Sony that began as early as 1988, the two companies worked to create a [[CD-ROM]] version of the Super Famicom,<ref>"Game Over", by David Scheff</ref> though Nintendo denied the existence of the Sony deal as late as March 1991.<ref name="cgw199106">{{cite magazine | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1991&pub=2&id=83 | title=Celebrating Software | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=June 1991 | access-date=November 17, 2013 | page=64 | archive-date=December 3, 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203004050/http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1991&pub=2&id=83 | url-status=live }}</ref> At the [[Consumer Electronics Show]] in June 1991, Sony revealed a Super Famicom with a built-in CD-ROM drive, named the "Play Station" (also known as [[SNES-CD]]). However, a day after the announcement at CES, Nintendo announced that it would be breaking its partnership with Sony, opting to go with [[Philips]] instead but using the same technology.<ref name="History2">{{cite magazine |date=April 24, 2009 |url=http://www.edge-online.com/features/making-playstation/ |title=The Making Of: PlayStation |author=<!--Not stated--> |magazine=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge Online]] |publisher=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge Magazine]] |access-date=February 2, 2014 |archive-date=February 6, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140206193956/http://www.edge-online.com/features/making-playstation/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The deal was broken by Nintendo after they were unable to come to an agreement on how revenue would be split between the two companies.<ref name="History2"/> The breaking of the partnership infuriated Sony President [[Norio Ohga]], who responded by appointing Kutaragi with the responsibility of developing the PlayStation project to rival Nintendo.<ref name="History2"/>

At that time, negotiations were still on-going between Nintendo and Sony, with Nintendo offering Sony a "non-gaming role" regarding their new partnership with Philips. This proposal was swiftly rejected by Kutaragi who was facing increasing criticism over his work with regard to entering the video game industry from within Sony. Negotiations officially ended in May 1992 and in order to decide the fate of the PlayStation project, a meeting was held in June 1992, consisting of Sony President Ohga, PlayStation Head Kutaragi and several senior members of Sony's board. At the meeting, Kutaragi unveiled a proprietary CD-ROM-based system he had been working on which involved playing video games with 3D graphics to the board. Eventually, Sony President Ohga decided to retain the project after being reminded by Kutaragi of the humiliation he suffered from Nintendo. Nevertheless, due to strong opposition from a majority present at the meeting as well as widespread internal opposition to the project by the older generation of Sony executives, Kutaragi and his team had to be shifted from Sony's headquarters to [[Sony Music]], a completely separate financial entity owned by Sony, so as to retain the project and maintain relationships with Philips for the MMCD development project (which helped lead to the creation of the [[DVD]])

===Continued research and development===
In 2021, the [[World Intellectual Property Organization|WIPO]]'s annual review of the [[World Intellectual Property Indicators]] report ranked Sony's as ninth in the world for the number of patent applications published under the [[Patent Cooperation Treaty|PCT System]]. 1,793 patent applications were published by Sony during 2020.<ref name=":7">{{cite web|title=World Intellectual Property Indicators 2021|url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pubdocs/en/wipo_pub_941_2021.pdf|url-status=live|access-date=30 November 2021|website=WIPO|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108113717/https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pubdocs/en/wipo_pub_941_2021.pdf|archive-date=8 November 2021}}</ref> This position is up from their previous ranking as 13th in 2019 with 1,566 applications.<ref name="wipo">{{cite book|author1=World Intellectual Property Organization|url=https://www.wipo.int/publications/en/details.jsp?id=4526|title=World Intellectual Property Indicators 2020|publisher=World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)|year=2020|isbn=9789280532012|series=World IP Indicators (WIPI)|language=en|doi=10.34667/tind.42184|access-date=2021-08-26|archive-date=2021-12-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211214220604/https://www.wipo.int/publications/en/details.jsp?id=4526|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Business units==
{{Further|List of assets owned by Sony}}
[[File:Sony store Westfield Riccarton 2013.jpg|thumb|Sony at [[Westfield Riccarton]] shopping centre in [[Christchurch]], New Zealand]]

Best known for its electronic products, Sony offers a wide variety of product lines in many areas. At its peak, it was dubbed as a "corporate octopus", for its sprawling ventures from private insurance to chemicals to cosmetics to home shopping to a Tokyo-based French food joint, in addition its core businesses such as electronics and entertainment.<ref name="Fackler" /> Even after it has unwound many business units including [[Sony Chemicals]] and [[Vaio]] PC, Sony still runs diverse businesses.

As of 2020, Sony is organized into the following business segments: Game & Network Services (G&NS), Music, Pictures, Electronics Products & Solutions (EP&S), Imaging & Sensing Solutions (I&SS), Financial Services, and Others.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=Sony Global – Organization Data |url=https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/Data/organization.html |access-date=3 July 2020 |website=www.sony.net |archive-date=2020-11-24  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124085641/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/Data/organization.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Usually, each business segment has a handful of corresponding intermediate holding companies under which all the related businesses are folded into, such as [[Columbia Records]] being part of [[Sony Music Group]], a subsidiary and, at the same time, a holding company for Sony's music businesses, along with [[Sony Music Entertainment Japan|SMEJ]].

===Electronics products & solutions===
Sony Corporation (Sony Electronics Corporation until 1 April 2021<ref>Officially, Sony Mobile Communications Inc. absorbed Sony Electronics Corporation, Sony Imaging Products & Solutions Inc., and Sony Home Entertainment & Sound Products Inc. and changed its trade name to Sony Corporation.</ref>) is the electronics business unit of the Sony Group. It primarily conducts research and development (R&D), planning, designing, manufacturing and marketing for electronics products. Sony Global Manufacturing & Operations Corporation (SGMO) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation and responsible for managing manufacturing operations both in Japan and overseas, through its own factories as well as [[electronics manufacturing services|third party contract manufacturers]].

====Audio====
[[File:First Walkman 1979 (31011124386).jpg|thumb|First Sony Walkman TPS-L2 from 1979 (expo in [[Sony Building (Tokyo)|Sony Building at Ginza, Chuo-Ku, Tokyo]])]]

In 1979, Sony released the world's first portable music player, the [[Walkman]], bundled with the MDL-3L2 [[headphones]]. This line fostered a fundamental change in music listening habits by allowing people to carry music with them and listen to music through lightweight headphones.<ref name=":5" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wells |first=Georgia |date=7 September 2016 |title=The History of Headphones |language=en-US |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-history-of-headphones-1473274924 |access-date=4 August 2020 |issn=0099-9660 |archive-date=2018-03-14  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180314071319/https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-history-of-headphones-1473274924 |url-status=live }}</ref> Originally used to refer to portable audio [[compact cassette|cassette]] players, the Walkman brand has been widely adopted by the company to encompass its portable digital audio and video players as well as a line of former [[Sony Mobile Communications|Sony Ericsson]] mobile phones. In the case of optical disc players, the [[Discman]] brand was used until the late 1990s. 
[[File:Sony Network Walkman NW-A3000.jpg|thumb|200x200px|The Sony [[Walkman A Series|NW-A3000]], the company's flagship digital player in 2005 that attempted to reincarnate Walkman]]
In 1999 Sony's first portable digital audio players were introduced; one was a player using [[Memory Stick]] flash storage created by the Walkman division, and the other was a smaller pen-sized player with embedded flash storage created by the [[Vaio]] division; both accompanied with Sony's [[OpenMG]] copyright protection technology and PC software for music transfer.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://edition.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9911/24/mp3.xmas.idg/index.html|title=CNN – MP3 for Christmas? Maybe – November 24, 1999|work=CNN|access-date=2020-09-24 |archive-date=2020-10-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024125018/http://edition.cnn.com/TECH/computing/9911/24/mp3.xmas.idg/index.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Microsoft and Sony Enable High-Quality Music Files To Be Downloaded on PCs and Portable Devices|date=15 November 1999|url=https://news.microsoft.com/1999/11/15/microsoft-and-sony-enable-high-quality-music-files-to-be-downloaded-on-pcs-and-portable-devices/|access-date=2020-09-24 |archive-date=2020-09-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926153130/https://news.microsoft.com/1999/11/15/microsoft-and-sony-enable-high-quality-music-files-to-be-downloaded-on-pcs-and-portable-devices/|url-status=live}}</ref> Sony continue to develop Walkman [[digital audio player]]s, although it was unable to capture the large share and influence in the digital world as it did in the cassette era.

Sony is a major audio products manufacturer and one of the [[active noise control]] technology leaders.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Apple? Bose? What your headphones say about you |url=https://www.ft.com/content/858f09bc-4116-11ea-bdb5-169ba7be433d |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/858f09bc-4116-11ea-bdb5-169ba7be433d |archive-date=10 December 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=5 August 2020 |newspaper=Financial Times|date=30 January 2020 |last1=Wray |first1=Adam }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=16 March 2019 |title=Five of the best noise-cancelling headphones |url=http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/mar/16/five-of-the-best-noise-cancelling-headphones |access-date=5 August 2020 |website=The Guardian |language=en |archive-date=2020-11-08  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108000434/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/mar/16/five-of-the-best-noise-cancelling-headphones |url-status=live }}</ref>

Sony's high-end microphones and headphones for professional use are produced at Sony/Taiyo Corporation, a designated special subsidiary at which 67% of employees have a disability, in [[Ōita Prefecture]], Japan.<ref>[https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/diversity/business/03.html Sony/Taiyo Monozukuri – supporting microphones on the front line] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817225712/https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/diversity/business/03.html |date=2023-08-17}}, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Sony Group</ref>

====Car audio====
Sony partnered with [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]] to provide OEM audio for their vehicles such as the [[Ford F-Series|F-150]], [[Ford Fiesta|Fiesta]], [[Ford Focus|Focus]], [[Ford Mondeo|Mondeo]] and [[Ford Taurus|Taurus]], [[Toyota]] with their [[Toyota Avensis|Avensis]] and the [[Toyota Celica|Celica]], [[Volkswagen]] with their [[Volkswagen Golf|Golf]], [[Volkswagen Passat|Passat]] and also the [[Volkswagen Polo|Polo]].<ref>{{cite web|title= Sony Ford OEM car audio |url=https://www.sony.co.uk/electronics/car-marine/oem-audio/available-models |access-date =2024-09-04|website=www.sony.co.uk/electronics/car-marine/oem-audio/available-models}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title= Sony Volkswagen OEM car audio|url=https://www.minidisc.wiki/equipment/sony/auto/mdx-5v101r|access-date =2024-09-04|website=www.minidisc.wiki/equipment/sony/auto/mdx-5v101r|date=5 September 2021 }}</ref> A specialist Sony Xplod audio system was fitted to the [[Ford GTX1]] supercar.<ref>{{cite web|title= Ford GT1X Sony audio system |url=https://www.netcarshow.com/ford/2005-gtx1_roadster/|access-date =2024-09-04|website=www.netcarshow.com/ford/2005-gtx1_roadster/}}</ref>
Sony currently produces aftermarket car audio with their Mobile ES series.<ref>{{cite web|title= Sony Mobile ES car audio|url=https://www.sony.co.uk/car-audio|access-date =2024-09-04|website=www.sony.co.uk/car-audio}}</ref>

====Video====
[[File:Trinitron KV-1320UB front.jpg|thumb|right|Sony KV-1320UB Trinitron from 1969]]
Sony produced the [[TV8-301]], the world's first all-[[transistor]] television, in 1959.<ref>{{Cite web |title=TV8-301 Portable Television, 1959 |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18796291/ |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |language=en-us |archive-date=2020-10-26  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026034254/https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18796291/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1968, the company introduced the [[Trinitron]] brand name for its lines of [[aperture grille]] [[cathode-ray tube]] televisions and afterwards [[Visual display unit|computer monitors]]. Sony stopped production of Trinitron for most markets, but continued producing sets for markets such as Pakistan, Bangladesh and China. Sony discontinued its series of Trinitron computer monitors in 2005. The company discontinued the last Trinitron-based television set in the U.S. in early 2007. The end of Trinitron marked the end of Sony's analog television sets and monitors.

Sony used the LCD [[WEGA]] name for its [[Liquid-crystal display|LCD]] TVs until summer 2005. The company then introduced the [[Bravia (brand)|BRAVIA]] name. BRAVIA is an in-house brand owned by Sony which produces high-definition LCD televisions, projection TVs and front projectors, home cinemas and the BRAVIA home theatre range. All Sony high-definition flat-panel LCD televisions in North America have carried the logo for BRAVIA since 2005. In 2006, Sony lost its decades-long No.1 market share in the global television market. In November 2007, the [[Sony XEL-1]], the first [[OLED]] television, was released and manufactured for two years. Later in 2013, Sony demonstrated the first 4K OLED television.<ref>{{Cite news |date=7 January 2008 |title=Sony brings OLED TV to U.S. |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-show-sony-idUSN0633798320080107 |access-date=3 August 2020 |archive-date=2021-02-19  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219130914/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-show-sony-idUSN0633798320080107 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony announces the world's first 4K OLED TV at CES: 3,840 x 2,160 resolution, no price or release in sight |url=https://www.engadget.com/2013-01-07-sony-world-first-oled-4k-hdtv-launch-ces-2013.html |access-date=6 August 2020 |website=Engadget |date=18 July 2019 |archive-date=2020-11-14  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201114232141/https://www.engadget.com/2013-01-07-sony-world-first-oled-4k-hdtv-launch-ces-2013.html |url-status=live }}</ref> As of 2012, Sony was the third-largest maker of televisions in the world and the business unit had been unprofitable for eight consecutive years.<ref name="Discounts">{{Cite news |last1=Yang |first1=Jun |last2=Yasu |first2=Mariko |date=23 May 2012 |title=Sony, Samsung Ask U.S. Retailers to Curb Discounts on TV Sets |agency=[[Bloomberg News]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-23/sony-samsung-ask-u-s-retailers-to-curb-discounts-on-tv-sets.html |access-date=2017-03-11  |archive-date=2015-01-09  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150109213634/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-23/sony-samsung-ask-u-s-retailers-to-curb-discounts-on-tv-sets.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Sony Bravia logo.svg|class=skin-invert|thumb|The logo of [[Bravia (brand)|Bravia]] television. Its backronym is "'''B'''est '''R'''esolution '''A'''udio '''V'''isual '''I'''ntegrated '''A'''rchitecture".]]

From 2011, Sony started restructuring of its loss-making television business, mainly by downsizing business units and outsourcing the manufacturing of display panels to the companies like [[Sharp Corporation]], [[LG Display]], and [[Samsung Electronics]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony to restructure TV business, in talks with LG to supply OLED panels? {{!}} OLED-Info |url=https://www.oled-info.com/sony-restructure-tv-business-talks-lg-supply-oled-panels |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=www.oled-info.com |archive-date=2020-10-29  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029054118/https://www.oled-info.com/sony-restructure-tv-business-talks-lg-supply-oled-panels |url-status=live }}</ref> In December 2011, Sony agreed to sell all stake in an LCD joint venture with Samsung Electronics ([[S-LCD]]) for about $940&nbsp;million.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony sells $940m LCD stake to Samsung to slash TV losses. |date=27 December 2011 |url=http://gulfnews.com/business/technology/sony-sells-940m-lcd-stake-to-samsung-to-slash-tv-losses-1.957299 |access-date=27 December 2011 |archive-date=2014-10-22  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141022133906/http://gulfnews.com/business/technology/sony-sells-940m-lcd-stake-to-samsung-to-slash-tv-losses-1.957299 |url-status=live }}</ref> On 28 March 2012, Sony and Sharp announced that they have agreed to further amend the joint venture agreement originally executed by the parties in July 2009, as amended in April 2011, for the establishment and operation of Sharp Display Products Corporation ("SDP"), a joint venture to produce and sell large-sized LCD panels and modules.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony and Sharp in LCD panel joint venture |url=http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/201203/12-0328E/ |access-date=12 May 2014 |publisher=Sony.net |archive-date=2020-11-27  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127014414/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/201203/12-0328E/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The agreement was eventually terminated as Sony parted ways.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Welch |first=Chris |date=2 May 2012 |title=Sony and Sharp officially terminate LCD partnership |url=https://www.theverge.com/2012/5/24/3040682/sony-sharp-terminate-lcd-display-joint-venture |access-date=12 July 2020 |website=The Verge |language=en |archive-date=2020-08-07  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807125336/https://www.theverge.com/2012/5/24/3040682/sony-sharp-terminate-lcd-display-joint-venture |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony's [[Sony Mobile Display|small-sized LCD business subsidiary]] and medium-to-large-sized OLED display business unit were spun off and became part of [[Japan Display]] and [[JOLED]], respectively.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Budget brand TCL teams with Sony-Panasonic venture for large TVs |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Business-deals/Budget-brand-TCL-teams-with-Sony-Panasonic-venture-for-large-TVs |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=Nikkei Asian Review |language=en-GB |archive-date=2021-02-01  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210201035333/https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Business-deals/Budget-brand-TCL-teams-with-Sony-Panasonic-venture-for-large-TVs |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2017, Sony launched OLED televisions under the BRAVIA brand.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony 2017 TV line-up – full overview with prices |url=https://www.flatpanelshd.com/article.php?subaction=showfull&id=1487919714 |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=FlatpanelsHD | date=2 February 2017 |archive-date=2020-10-27  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027102332/https://www.flatpanelshd.com/article.php?subaction=showfull&id=1487919714 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Also, Sony has sold a range of tapes, discs, recorders and players for [[Videotape|videocassette]], [[DVD player|DVD]], and [[Blu-ray]] formats for decades.

====Photography and videography====
{{multiple image
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| image1            = Sony CyberShot HX60 - 01.JPG
| caption1          = A Sony [[Cyber-shot]] digital camera
| image2            = Sony Alpha ILCA-99M2 front-left 2017 CP+.jpg
| caption2          = Digital [[Sony SLT camera]] [[α99 II]]
| align             = 
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}}

Sony offers a wide range of digital cameras. Its point-and-shoot models are branded [[Cyber-shot]], while [[digital single-lens reflex camera|DSLRs]] and [[Mirrorless camera|mirrorless]] models are branded [[Sony Alpha|Alpha]], though Sony no longer makes [[digital single-lens reflex camera|DSLRs]]. It also produces [[Sony Action Cam|action cameras]] and [[Sony camcorders|camcorders]], with the company's [[Digital movie camera|cinema-grade]] products being sold under the [[CineAlta]] name.

Sony demonstrated a prototype of the [[Sony Mavica]] in 1981 and released it for the consumer market in 1988. The first Cyber-shot was introduced in 1996. Sony's market share of the digital camera market fell from a high of 20% to 9% by 2005.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony Global – Product & Technology Milestones-Digital Camera |url=https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/sonyhistory-g.html |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=www.sony.net |archive-date=2021-02-05  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205172410/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/sonyhistory-g.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Nakamoto">Nakamoto, Michiyo. "Screen Test: Stringers Strategy Will Signal to what Extent Sony can Stay in the Game CONSUMER ELECTRONICS: The Japanese Company that Once Brought the World Market-Defining Products is being Trounced by More Agile Competitors and must Decide which Activities no Longer Form Part of its Future, Writes Michiyo Nakamoto." Financial Times: 17. ABI/INFORM Global. 21 September 2005. Web. 27 May 2012.</ref>

Sony entered the market for [[digital single-lens reflex camera]]s in 2006 when it acquired the camera business of [[Konica Minolta]]. Sony rebranded the company's line of cameras as its [[Sony Alpha|Alpha]] line. Sony is the world's third largest manufacturer of the cameras, behind [[Canon (company)|Canon]] and [[Nikon]] respectively.

In 2010, Sony introduced their first [[mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera]]s, which were the [[NEX-3]] and the [[Sony NEX-5|NEX-5]]. They also started a new lens mount system, which was the [[Sony E-mount|E-mount.]] There were quite a few NEX models out there, when Sony decided to melt the NEX series into the Alpha series. The first Alpha MILC was the [[Sony α3000|α3000]], which was introduced in August 2013. It was followed by the Full-Frame [[Sony α7|α7]] and [[α7R]] in October, then the successors of the [[Sony NEX-5|NEX-5]], the [[Sony NEX-6|NEX-6]] and [[Sony NEX-7|NEX-7]], the [[Sony α5000|α5000]] and the [[Sony α6000|α6000]] in 2014. The α6000 became the most popular [[Mirrorless interchangeable-lens camera|MILC]] ever and Sony became the largest MILC manufacturer.

====Computing====
[[File:SONY VAIO VPCZ119FJ-S 02.jpg|thumb|Notebook [[Sony Vaio]]. Sony axed its loss-making PC business in 2014.]]
Sony produced computers ({{ill|SMC-777|jp|SMC-777}} personal computer, [[MSX]] [[home computer]]s and [[Sony NEWS|NEWS]] [[workstation]]s) during the 1980s. The company withdrew from the computer business around 1990. Sony entered again into the global computer market under the new [[VAIO]] brand, began in 1996. Short for "Video Audio Integrated Operation", the line was the first computer brand to highlight visual-audio features.<ref name="Nakamoto" />

Sony faced considerable controversy when some of its laptop batteries exploded and caught fire in 2006, resulting in the largest computer-related recall to that point in history.<ref>{{Cite news |date=14 August 2006 |title=Dell Details on Notebook Battery Recall |publisher=Direct2Dell |url=http://www.direct2dell.com/one2one/archive/2006/08/14/1803.aspx |access-date=21 August 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060820160832/http://www.direct2dell.com/one2one/archive/2006/08/14/1803.aspx |archive-date=20 August 2006}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=14 August 2006 |title=Dell announces recall of 4.1&nbsp;million laptop batteries |publisher=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/dell-announces-recall-of-4-1-million-laptop-batteries-1.622108 |access-date=28 September 2006 |archive-date=2020-10-02  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201002183954/https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/dell-announces-recall-of-4-1-million-laptop-batteries-1.622108 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=24 August 2006 |title=Sony, Dell battery issue heats up |publisher=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/sony-dell-battery-issue-heats-up-1.574712 |access-date=24 August 2006 |archive-date=2010-12-04  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101204012713/http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2006/08/24/tech-battery.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In a bid to join the [[tablet computer]] market, the company launched its [[Sony Tablet]] line of [[Android (operating system)|Android]] tablets in 2011. Since 2012, Sony's Android products have been marketed under the [[Xperia]] brand used for its smartphones.<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 July 2009 |title=Tablet & Smartphones &#124; Xperia™ Tablet & Smartphones |url=http://www.sony.co.uk/hub/sony-tablet-smartphones |access-date=10 July 2013 |publisher=Sony |archive-date=2014-01-24  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140124053850/http://www.sony.co.uk/hub/sony-tablet-smartphones |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 4 February 2014, Sony announced that it would sell its VAIO PC business due to poor sales<ref name="Sony VAIO divestment">{{Cite news |last=Smith |first=Mat |date=6 February 2014 |title=Sony sells its VAIO PC business, makes TV arm its own subsidiary |work=Engadget |url=https://www.engadget.com/2014/02/06/sony-sells-vaio/ |access-date=6 February 2014 |archive-date=2020-01-29  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200129053600/https://www.engadget.com/2014/02/06/sony-sells-vaio/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and Japanese company Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) will purchase the VAIO brand, with the deal finalized by the end of March 2014.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Catherine Shu |date=6 February 2014 |title=Sony To Exit PC Business By Selling VAIO |url=https://techcrunch.com/2014/02/06/sony-vaio-sale/?ncid=tcdaily |access-date=7 February 2014 |website=TechCrunch |publisher=AOL, Inc |archive-date=2021-01-26  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126083131/http://techcrunch.com/2014/02/06/sony-vaio-sale/?ncid=tcdaily |url-status=live }}</ref> As of 2018, Sony maintained a 5% stake in the new, independent company.

In the 1990s, Sony was contracted to manufacture laptop computers for Apple and Dell.<ref>{{cite news |title=COMPANY NEWS; Sony Is Near Macintosh Pact |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/16/business/company-news-sony-is-near-macintosh-pact.html |work=The New York Times |agency=Associated Press |date=1991-02-16 |access-date=2023-08-26 |ref=none |archive-date=2023-08-26  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230826071243/https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/16/business/company-news-sony-is-near-macintosh-pact.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=COMPANY NEWS; SONY WILL SUPPLY NOTEBOOK COMPUTERS TO DELL |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/12/22/business/company-news-sony-will-supply-notebook-computers-to-dell.html |work=The New York Times |agency=Associated Press |date=1993-12-22 |access-date=2023-08-26 |ref=none |archive-date=2023-08-26  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230826071244/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/12/22/business/company-news-sony-will-supply-notebook-computers-to-dell.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Raspberry Pi Foundation]] delegates the manufacture of its [[single-board computer]]s to Sony. Most [[Raspberry Pi]] computers are made at Sony UK Technology Centre in [[Pencoed]], Wales, UK.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cam.ac.uk/stories/raspberrypi |title=The life of Pi: Ten years of Raspberry Pi. The most successful computer ever to come out of the UK celebrates its tenth anniversary this year. |author=Sarah Collins |date=2022-02-28 |publisher=University of Cambridge |access-date= |quote= |archive-date=2023-11-03  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231103125048/https://www.cam.ac.uk/stories/raspberrypi |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite AV media |people=Raspberry Pi |date=2023-07-23 |title=Tour the Raspberry Pi factory in Wales, UK |trans-title= |type= |language= |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2f3qkK5eKo |access-date=2023-08-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230826071244/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2f3qkK5eKo |archive-date=2023-08-26  |format= |time= |location= |publisher= |via=YouTube |id= |isbn= |oclc= |quote= |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite AV media |people=Jeff Geerling |date=2023-06-08 |title=How Raspberry Pis are made (Factory Tour) |trans-title= |type= |language= |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2C4lbbIH0c |access-date=2023-08-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230826071244/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2C4lbbIH0c |archive-date=2023-08-26  |format= |time= |location= |publisher= |via=YouTube |id= |isbn= |oclc= |quote= |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Healthcare and biotechnology====
Sony has targeted medical, healthcare and biotechnology business as a growth sector in the future. The company acquired iCyt Mission Technology, Inc. (renamed Sony Biotechnology Inc. in 2012), a manufacturer of flow cytometers, in 2010 and Micronics, Inc., a developer of microfluidics-based diagnostic tools, in 2011.

In 2012, Sony announced that it would acquire all shares of [[So-net]] Entertainment Corporation, the largest shareholder of M3, Inc., an operator of portal sites (m3.com, MR-kun, MDLinx and MEDI:GATE) for healthcare professionals.

On 28 September 2012, [[Olympus Corporation|Olympus]] and Sony announced that the two companies will establish a joint venture to develop new surgical endoscopes with [[4K resolution]] (or higher) and 3D capability.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Announcement of Agreements Between Olympus and Sony to Form Business and Capital Alliance |url=http://www.olympus-global.com/en/corc/ir/tes/pdf/nr120928_3.pdf |access-date=12 May 2014 |publisher=Olympus-global.com |archive-date=2019-03-29  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190329210321/https://www.olympus-global.com/company/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony Olympus Medical Solutions Inc. (Sony 51%, Olympus 49%) was established on 16 April 2013.<ref name="sony-olympus-medical">{{Cite press release |title=Establishment of Sony Olympus Medical Solutions Inc. |date=16 April 2013 |publisher=Sony Olympus Medical Solutions |url=http://www.sony-olympus-medical.com/somed/ja/news/20130416-001.html |access-date=19 April 2013 |archive-date=2020-11-24  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124001532/https://www.sony-olympus-medical.com/somed/ja/news/20130416-001.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 28 February 2014, Sony, M3 and [[Illumina (company)|Illumina]] established a joint venture called P5, Inc. to provide a genome analysis service for research institutions and enterprises in Japan.<ref name="P5">{{Cite press release |title=Establishment of a New Company to start genome information platform business |date=23 January 2014 |publisher=Sony Corporation |url=http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/201401/14-011E/index.html |access-date=16 May 2014 |archive-date=2018-12-15  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215174550/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/201401/14-011E/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Mobility====
[[File:Xperia Logo.svg|class=skin-invert|thumb|left|[[Sony Xperia|Xperia]], the product device name for a range of smartphones from Sony]]
{{multiple image
| total_width       = 300
| direction         = horizontal
| image1            = Telefon komórkowy SONY CMD-CD5.jpg
| caption1          = A historical Sony CMD-CD5 mobile phone
| image2            = Sony Xperia Z (12480502603).jpg
| caption2          = [[Sony Xperia Z]], introduced and released in 2013. The first [[smartphone]] with a [[1080p|Full HD]] display.
| align             = 
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}}

In 2000, Sony was a marginal player in the mobile phone market with a share of less than 1 percent. In 2001, Sony entered into a joint venture with Swedish telecommunications company [[Ericsson]], forming Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications.<ref name="Sony Ericsson press release">{{Cite press release |title=Sony and Ericsson complete joint venture agreement |date=28 August 2001 |publisher=Sony |url=http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press_Archive/200108/01-0828/ |access-date=26 May 2012 |archive-date=2020-10-21  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021011101/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press_Archive/200108/01-0828/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Initial sales were rocky, and the company posted losses in 2001 and 2002. However, Sony Ericsson reached a profit in 2003. The company distinguished itself with multimedia-capable mobile phones, which included features such as cameras. These were unusual at the time. Despite their innovations, Sony Ericsson faced intense competition from [[Apple Inc.|Apple]]'s [[iPhone]], which was released in 2007. From 2008 to 2010, amid a global recession, Sony Ericsson slashed its workforce by several thousand. In 2009, Sony Ericsson was the fourth-largest mobile phone manufacturer in the world (after [[Nokia]], [[Samsung Electronics|Samsung]] and [[LG Electronics|LG]]).<ref>[http://www.telecomskorea.com/market-8211.html nonmember] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125012212/http://www.telecomskorea.com/market-8211.html |date=2010-01-25}}. Telecoms Korea. Retrieved on 11 July 2011.</ref> By 2010, its market share had fallen to sixth place.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 February 2011 |title=Gartner Says Worldwide Mobile Device Sales to End Users Reached 1.6&nbsp;billion Units in 2010; Smartphone Sales Grew 72 Percent in 2010: Apple and RIM Displaced Sony Ericsson and Motorola in Mobile Device Manufacturers Ranking |url=http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=1543014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110209073531/http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=1543014 |url-status=dead |archive-date=9 February 2011 |publisher=gartner.com}}</ref> Sony acquired Ericsson's share of the venture in 2012 for over US$1&nbsp;billion.<ref name="Sony Ericsson press release" /> [[Sony Mobile]] focuses exclusively on the smartphone market under the [[Sony Xperia|Xperia]] brand.

In 2013, Sony contributed to around two percent of the mobile phone market with 37&nbsp;million mobile phones sold.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Topic: Sony |url=http://www.statista.com/topics/1917/sony/ |access-date=23 March 2016 |website=www.statista.com |archive-date=2021-01-14  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114144031/https://www.statista.com/topics/1917/sony/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony Mobile's sales reached a peak in 2014 with 40&nbsp;million handsets, the volume has since decreased. Sony shipped 13.5&nbsp;million phones in 2017, 6.5&nbsp;million in 2018, and 2.9&nbsp;million handsets in FY 2020.<ref>{{cite web |title=Form 20-F (FY2020) |url=https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/IR/library/FY2020_20F_PDF.pdf |website=Investor Relations |publisher=Sony Group Corporation |access-date=4 November 2021 |location=Tokyo |page=37 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210625191816/https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/IR/library/FY2020_20F_PDF.pdf |archive-date=25 June 2021 |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Robotics====
[[File:Sony Qrio Robot 2.png|150px|thumb|[[QRIO|Sony QRIO]], a humanoid robot]]

Since the late 1990s, Sony has released numerous consumer robots, including dog-shaped robots called [[AIBO]], a music playing robot called [[Sony Rolly|Rolly]], and a [[humanoid]] robot called [[QRIO]]. Despite being a pioneer in the field, Sony had ceased robotics-related operations for 10 years due to financial difficulties, until it decided to revive them in 2016.<ref>{{Cite news |date=29 June 2016 |title=UPDATE 2-Sony upbeat on games and robots but cuts outlook for image sensors |language=de |work=Reuters |url=https://de.reuters.com/article/sony-outlook-idUKL4N19L0TF |access-date=3 August 2020}}{{dead link|date=July 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

In 2015, Sony partnered with an autonomous driving startup [[ZMP INC.]] to establish an aerial surveillance and reconnaissance [[Unmanned aerial vehicle|drone]] manufacturer named Aerosense.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gibbs |first=Samuel |title=Sony is launching a new company to make camera drones |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/sony-and-zmp-are-launching-a-new-company-to-make-camera-drones-2015-7 |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=Business Insider |archive-date=2016-05-19  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160519173020/http://www.businessinsider.com/sony-and-zmp-are-launching-a-new-company-to-make-camera-drones-2015-7 |url-status=live }}</ref> At the CES 2021, Sony unveiled a [[Unmanned aerial vehicle|drone]] with the brand Airpeak, the smallest of its kind that can incorporate a [[Sony α|Sony Alpha]] camera according to the company, entering the drone business on its own for the first time.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Gartenberg|first=Chaim|date=11 January 2021|title=This is Sony's Airpeak drone|url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/11/22225758/sony-airpeak-drone-alpha-photography-cameras-ces-2021-announcement|access-date=12 January 2021|website=The Verge|language=en|archive-date=2021-02-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210218112528/https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/11/22225758/sony-airpeak-drone-alpha-photography-cameras-ces-2021-announcement|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2019, as part of the [[London Design Festival]], Sony Design showcased ''Affinity in Autonomy'', a conceptual environmental art installation in the Prince Consort Gallery of the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]] that represented the company's vision of the future of AI and Robotics.<ref name="Sony-2019">{{Cite web |date=26 August 2019 |title=London Design Festival: Affinity in Autonomy |url=https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/design/news/event/20190826/ |access-date=16 March 2025 |website=Sony}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Affinity in Autonomy, Prince Consort Gallery |url=https://www.vam.ac.uk/event/lyLZ07g7/affinity-in-autonomy |access-date=2025-03-16 |website=[[Victoria and Albert Museum]] |language=en}}</ref>

===Imaging & sensing solutions===
Sony traces its roots in the semiconductor business back to 1954, when it became the first Japanese company to commercialize the [[transistor]], invented and licensed by [[Bell Labs]], whilst some of the biggest and well-established names in Japan at the time like [[Toshiba]] and [[Mitsubishi Electric]] initially stuck with [[vacuum tube]]s they had been thriving on; despite being an expert on the vacuum tube himself, Ibuka saw potential of the novel technology and had Morita negotiate the terms for licensing, making Sony into one of the earliest and the youngest licensees of the transistor, together with [[Texas Instruments]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Group｜Corporate Information｜Sony Semiconductor Solutions Group |url=https://www.sony-semicon.co.jp/e/company/group/ |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=Sony Semiconductor Solutions Group |language=en |archive-date=2020-06-18  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200618131443/https://www.sony-semicon.co.jp/e/company/group/ |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Sony Global – Sony History Chapter4 Ibuka's First Visit to the United States|url=https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/SonyHistory/1-04.html|access-date=9 March 2021|website=www.sony.net|archive-date=2021-03-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210304004032/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/SonyHistory/1-04.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=1952: Bell Labs Licenses Transistor Technology {{!}} The Silicon Engine {{!}} Computer History Museum |url=https://www.computerhistory.org/siliconengine/bell-labs-licenses-transistor-technology/ |access-date=28 September 2020 |website=www.computerhistory.org |archive-date=2020-10-30  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030183946/https://www.computerhistory.org/siliconengine/bell-labs-licenses-transistor-technology/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1957, Sony employee [[Leo Esaki]] and his colleagues invented a [[tunnel diode]] (usually referred to as Esaki diode) by which they discovered the [[Quantum tunnelling|quantum tunneling]] effect in solids, for which Esaki received the [[Nobel Prize in Physics|Nobel prize in Physics]] in 1973.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Nobel Prize in Physics 1973 |url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1973/esaki/biographical/ |access-date=6 October 2020 |website=NobelPrize.org |language=en-US |archive-date=2020-11-30  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201130113326/https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1973/esaki/biographical/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony has commanded a dominant share in the [[charge-coupled device]] market.<ref>{{Cite web|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->s|title=CCD market shares: Sony – 41%, Matsushita – 14.6%, Sharp – 13.8%|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/ccd-market-shares-sony-41-matsushita-14-6-sharp-13-8/|access-date=16 January 2021|website=ZDNet|language=en|archive-date=2021-02-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219133733/https://www.zdnet.com/article/ccd-market-shares-sony-41-matsushita-14-6-sharp-13-8/|url-status=live}}</ref>

As of 2020, Sony is the world's largest manufacturer of [[CMOS image sensor]]s as its chips are widely used in digital cameras, tablet computers, smartphones, drones and more recently, self-driving systems in automobiles.<ref>{{Cite web|title=CMOS IMAGE SENSOR (CIS) INDUSTRY – OVERVIEW|url=http://www.yole.fr/CMOS_Image_Sensors_Industry_Overview.aspx|access-date=16 January 2021|website=www.yole.fr|archive-date=2021-01-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121024640/http://www.yole.fr/CMOS_Image_Sensors_Industry_Overview.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref>

As of 2020, the company, through its chip business arm Sony Semiconductor Solutions, designs, manufactures, and sells a wide range of [[semiconductor]]s and electronic components, including image sensors ([[HAD CCD]], [[Exmor]]), image processors ([[BIONZ]]), [[laser diode]]s, system LSIs, mixed-signal LSIs, emerging [[Storage (memory)|memory storage]], emerging displays ([[microLED]], microOLED, and [[holographic display]]), multi-functional [[microcomputer]] (''SPRESENSE''), etc.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Products(Products List)｜Sony Semiconductor Solutions Group |url=https://www.sony-semicon.co.jp/e/products/ |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=Sony Semiconductor Solutions Group |language=en |archive-date=2020-11-11  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111202421/https://www.sony-semicon.co.jp/e/products/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 2020, Sony has launched the first [[intelligent vision sensor]]s with [[AI]] [[edge computing]] capabilies.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lorbeer/pi |first1=Klaus |title=Sony launcht weltweit erste Intelligent-Vision-Sensoren mit KI-Verarbeitung |url=https://computerwelt.at/news/sony-launcht-weltweit-ersten-intelligent-vision-sensoren-mit-ki-verarbeitung/ |access-date=15 May 2021 |work=computerwelt.at |date=14 May 2020 |language=de-DE |archive-date=2021-05-15  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515120305/https://computerwelt.at/news/sony-launcht-weltweit-ersten-intelligent-vision-sensoren-mit-ki-verarbeitung/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Game & network services===
{{main|Sony Interactive Entertainment}}
[[File:Sony_Interactive_Entertainment_San_Mateo.jpg|thumb|left|Sony Interactive Entertainment headquarters in [[San Mateo, California]] ]]

Sony Interactive Entertainment (formerly Sony Computer Entertainment) is best known for producing the popular line of [[PlayStation]] consoles. The line grew out of a failed partnership with [[Nintendo]]. Originally, Nintendo requested Sony to develop an add-on for its [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System]] that would play CD-ROMs. In 1991 Sony announced [[SNES-CD|the add-on]], as well as a dedicated console known as the "Play Station".<!--DO NOT CHANGE TO PLAYSTATION. There was a space in the proposed name.--> However, a disagreement over software licensing for the console caused the partnership to fall through. Sony then continued the project independently.

Launched in 1994, the [[PlayStation (console)|first PlayStation]] gained 61% of global console sales and broke Nintendo's long-standing lead in the market.<ref name="Quest">"The PlayStation Quest." Macleans 6 November 2000: 81-. ABI/INFORM Global; ProQuest Research Library. Web. 27 May 2012.</ref> Sony followed up with the [[PlayStation 2]] in 2000, which was even more successful. The console has become the [[List of best-selling game consoles|most successful]] of all time, selling over 150&nbsp;million units {{as of|2011|lc=on}}. Sony released the [[PlayStation 3]], a high-definition console, in 2006. It was the first console to use the [[Blu-ray]] format, and was considerably more expensive than the competitors [[Xbox 360]] and [[Wii]] due to the [[Cell (microprocessor)|Cell processor]].<ref name="Nakamoto" />

Early on, poor sales performance resulted in significant losses for the company, pushing it to sell the console at a [[loss leader|loss]].<ref name="Pilling">Pilling, David. "Camera Sales Raise Sonys Game." Financial Times: 23. ABI/INFORM Global. 27 July 2007. Web. 27 May 2012.</ref> The PlayStation 3 sold generally more poorly than its competitors in the early years of its release but managed to overtake the Xbox 360 in global sales later on.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Makuch |first=Eddie |title=PS3 overtakes Xbox 360 in worldwide shipments – Report |url=http://uk.gamespot.com/news/ps3-overtakes-xbox-360-in-worldwide-shipments-report-6402214 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130321124342/http://uk.gamespot.com/news/ps3-overtakes-xbox-360-in-worldwide-shipments-report-6402214 |archive-date=21 March 2013 |website=GameSpot}}</ref> It later introduced the [[PlayStation Move]], an accessory that allows players to control video games using motion gestures.

{{multiple image
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Sony extended the brand to the portable games market in 2004 with the [[PlayStation Portable]] (PSP). The console has sold reasonably, but has taken a second place to a rival handheld, the [[Nintendo DS]]. Sony developed the [[Universal Media Disc]] (UMD) optical disc medium for use on the PlayStation Portable. Early on, the format was used for movies, but it has since lost major studio support. Sony released a disc-less version of its PlayStation Portable, the [[PlayStation Portable#PSP Go (N1000)|PSP Go]], in 2009. The company went on to release its second portable video game system, [[PlayStation Vita]], in 2011 and 2012. Sony launched its fourth console, the [[PlayStation 4]], on 15 November 2013, which as of 31 December 2017 has sold 73.6&nbsp;million units globally.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=PLAYSTATION 4 SELLS 5.9 MILLION UNITS WORLDWIDE DURING THE 2017 HOLIDAY SEASON |date=8 January 2018 |publisher=Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. |location=San Mateo |url=http://www.sie.com/en/corporate/release/2018/180109.html |access-date=16 April 2018 |via=sie.com |archive-date=2018-01-10  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180110052815/https://www.sie.com/en/corporate/release/2018/180109.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 18 March 2014, at [[Game Developers Conference|GDC]], president of [[SCE Worldwide Studios]] [[Shuhei Yoshida]] announced their new virtual reality technology dubbed Project Morpheus, and later named [[PlayStation VR]], for PlayStation 4. The headset brought VR gaming and non-gaming software to the company's console. According to a report released by Houston-based patent consulting firm [[LexInnova Technologies|LexInnova]] in May 2015, Sony is leading the virtual reality patent race. According to the firm's analysis of nearly 12,000 patents or patent applications, Sony has 366 virtual reality patents or patent applications.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony leads virtual reality patent race |url=http://www.hypergridbusiness.com/2015/05/sony-leads-virtual-reality-patent-race/ |website=hypergridbusiness.com |date=13 May 2015 |access-date=2015-07-03  |archive-date=2020-10-27  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027130546/https://www.hypergridbusiness.com/2015/05/sony-leads-virtual-reality-patent-race/ |url-status=live }}</ref> PlayStation VR was released worldwide on 13 October 2016.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Layden |first=Shawn |date=13 October 2016 |title=PlayStation VR Launches Today Across the United States and Canada |url=http://blog.us.playstation.com/2016/10/13/playstation-vr-launches-today-across-the-united-states-and-canada/ |access-date=2017-01-24  |archive-date=2019-03-08  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190308015250/https://blog.us.playstation.com/2016/10/13/playstation-vr-launches-today-across-the-united-states-and-canada/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 31 March 2019, the successor to the PlayStation 4 was announced and on 12 November 2020, the [[PlayStation 5]] was released in North America, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore. The console was launched in Indonesia on 22 January 2021. Upon completion of the fiscal quarter, Sony sold 4.5 million PlayStation 5 consoles, keeping pace with the best-selling console of all time, the PlayStation 2.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.laptopmag.com/news/ps5-sales-figures-revealed-and-they-are-staggering |title=PS5 sales figures revealed — and they are staggering |work=Laptop Magazine |last=Murphy |first=Darragh |date=3 February 2021 |access-date=17 August 2021 |archive-date=2021-03-08  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308030202/https://www.laptopmag.com/news/ps5-sales-figures-revealed-and-they-are-staggering |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Pictures and music===
{{further|Sony Entertainment}}

[[Sony Entertainment]] has two divisions: [[Sony Pictures|Sony Pictures Entertainment]], Sony Music Group ([[Sony Music|Sony Music Entertainment]], [[Sony Music Publishing]]). [[Sony Corporation of America|Sony USA]] previously owned and operated Sony Trans Com: a technology business that provided in-flight entertainment programming as well as video and audio playback equipment for the airline industry. Sony had purchased the business from Sundstrand Corp. in 1989 and subsequently sold it to [[Rockwell Collins]] in 2000.<ref>{{Cite web |date=10 July 1991 |title=Sundstrand Selling Trans Com Systems To Sony |website=[[Associated Press]] |url=https://www.apnews.com/0b3960e064a66f9a5c0057fd4525a89a |access-date=12 August 2018 |archive-date=2020-10-04  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004032750/https://apnews.com/0b3960e064a66f9a5c0057fd4525a89a |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=1 June 2000 |title=Rockwell Collins Acquires Sony Trans Com |url=http://aviationweek.com/awin/rockwell-collins-acquires-sony-trans-com-0 |access-date=12 August 2018 |archive-date=2018-03-26  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326044954/http://aviationweek.com/awin/rockwell-collins-acquires-sony-trans-com-0 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2012, Sony rolled most of its consumer content services (including video, music and gaming) into the [[Sony Entertainment Network]], the predecessor of [[PlayStation Network]].

====Sony Pictures Entertainment====
{{main|Sony Pictures|Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan|Sony Pictures Networks India}}
[[File:Sony Pictures Studios Motor Gate.jpg|thumb|The entrance to the [[Sony Pictures Entertainment]] studio lot in [[Los Angeles]], California]]

Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. (SPE) is the television and film production/distribution unit of Sony. With 12.5% box office market share in 2011, the company was ranked third among movie studios.<ref name="BOM">{{Cite web |date=31 December 2011 |title=2011 Market Share and Box Office Results by Movie Studio |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/studio/?view=company&view2=yearly&yr=2011&p=.htm |access-date=9 November 2012 |website=[[Box Office Mojo]] |archive-date=2019-07-24  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190724113614/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/studio/?view=company&view2=yearly&yr=2011&p=.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Its group sales in 2010 were US$7.2&nbsp;billion.<ref name="Annual Report 2010">[http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/financial/ar/8ido18000003dkyy-att/8ido18000003dl0u.pdf Business Overview, Annual Report 2010]. (PDF). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101224175822/http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/financial/ar/8ido18000003dkyy-att/8ido18000003dl0u.pdf |date=2010-12-24}}. Retrieved 7 July 2011.</ref><ref name="Profile">[http://www.sonypictures.com/corp/corporatefact.html Sony Pictures – Corporate Factsheet], sonypictures.com {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051104051441/http://www.sonypictures.com/corp/corporatefact.html |date=4 November 2005 }}</ref> The company has produced many notable movie franchises, including ''[[Spider-Man in film|Spider-Man]]'', ''[[The Karate Kid, Part III|The Karate Kid]]'' and ''[[Men in Black (film series)|Men in Black]]''. It has also produced the popular television game shows ''[[Jeopardy!]]'' and ''[[Wheel of Fortune (American game show)|Wheel of Fortune]]''.

Sony entered the television and film production market when it acquired Columbia Pictures Entertainment in 1989 for $3.4&nbsp;billion. Columbia lives on in the [[Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group]], a division of SPE which in turn owns [[Columbia Pictures]] and [[TriStar Pictures]] among other film production and distribution companies such as [[Screen Gems]], [[Sony Pictures Classics]], [[Sony Pictures Home Entertainment]]. SPE's television division is known as [[Sony Pictures Television]].

For the first several years of its existence, Sony Pictures Entertainment performed poorly, leading many to suspect the company would sell off the division.<ref name="Bates">{{Cite news |last1=Bates |first1=James |last2=Claudia Eller |date=20 November 1996 |title=Sony President Puts Best Face on Studio Woes |page=D1 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref> In 2006, Sony started using [[ARccOS Protection]] on some of their film DVDs, but later issued a recall.<ref>[https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070418-sony-to-replace-incompatible-dvds.html "Sony admits, fixes problem with DVD DRM"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090122230537/http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070418-sony-to-replace-incompatible-dvds.html |date=2009-01-22}}. [[Ars Technica]].</ref>

In late 2014, Sony Pictures [[Sony Pictures hack|became the target of a hack attack]] from a clandestine group called Guardians of Peace, weeks before releasing the anti-North Korean [[comedy film]] ''[[The Interview]]''.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Hack at Sony Pictures shuts computer system |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-fi-sony-hack-20141125-story.html |access-date=2020-04-28  |archive-date=2021-01-26  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126064505/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-fi-sony-hack-20141125-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In February 2024, Sony entered into an agreement with [[Disney]] under which [[Sony Pictures Home Entertainment]] Corporation of Japan will handle the release of Disney products on [[DVD]] and [[Blu-ray]] on a licensing model, as well as production on physical media. Sony will market, sell and distribute new Disney releases and catalog films on DVD, Blu-ray and [[Ultra HD Blu-ray|4K Ultra DVD]] through Canadian and American retailers and distributors.<ref>{{Cite web|language=en|url=https://www.tipranks.com/news/the-fly/disney-sony-reach-deal-for-physical-media-production-deadline-reports|title=Disney, Sony reach deal for physical media production|website=Tipranks|access-date=2024-02-26|archive-date=2024-02-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240226185903/https://www.tipranks.com/news/the-fly/disney-sony-reach-deal-for-physical-media-production-deadline-reports}}</ref>

====Sony Music Group and SMEJ====
{{main|Sony Music|Sony Music Publishing|Sony Music Entertainment Japan}}
[[File:Met Life North Building from West 25th Street.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Sony Music Entertainment]] headquarters in [[New York City, United States]]]]

Sony Music Entertainment (also known as SME or Sony Music) is the largest global [[music industry|recorded music company]] of the [[Music industry#Consolidation|"big three" record companies]] and is controlled by [[Sony Corporation of America]], the United States subsidiary of Sony.

In one of its largest-ever acquisitions, Sony purchased [[Columbia Records|CBS Record Group]] in 1988 for US$2&nbsp;billion.<ref name="UPI Archives">[https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/01/05/Sony-completes-2-billion-purchase-of-CBS-Records/2527568357200/ Sony completes $2 billion purchase of CBS Records] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024164249/https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/01/05/Sony-completes-2-billion-purchase-of-CBS-Records/2527568357200/ |date=2020-10-24}} upi.com 5 January 1988, Retrieved on 3 December 2017</ref> In the process, Sony partnered and gained the rights to the ATV catalogue of Michael Jackson, considered by the ''[[Guinness Book of World Records]]'' to be the most successful entertainer of all time. The acquisition of CBS Records provided the foundation for the formation of Sony Music Entertainment, which Sony established in 1991.

In 1968, Sony and CBS Records had formed a 50:50 joint-venture CBS/Sony Records, later renamed CBS/Sony Group, in Japan. When CBS Records was acquired, a 50% stake in CBS/Sony Group owned by CBS was also transferred to Sony. In March 1988, four wholly owned subsidiaries were folded into CBS/Sony Group and the company was renamed as [[Sony Music Entertainment Japan]] (SMEJ). It operates independently of Sony Music as it is directly owned by Japanese Sony.

In 2004, Sony entered into a joint venture with [[Bertelsmann AG]], merging Sony Music Entertainment with [[Bertelsmann Music Group]] to create [[Sony BMG]]. In 2005, Sony BMG faced a [[Sony BMG CD copy protection scandal|copy protection scandal]], because its music CDs had installed [[rootkit|malware]] on users' computers that was posing a security risk to affected customers.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Bob |date=1 November 2010 |title=Sony BMG rootkit scandal: 5 years later |work=Network World |url=http://www.networkworld.com/article/2194292/network-security-sony-bmg-rootkit-scandal--5-years-later.html |access-date=20 February 2015 |archive-date=2018-08-14  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814003208/https://www.networkworld.com/article/2194292/network-security/sony-bmg-rootkit-scandal--5-years-later.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2007, the company acquired [[Famous Music]] for US$370&nbsp;million, gaining the rights to the catalogues of [[Eminem]] and [[Akon]], among others. Sony bought out Bertelsmann's share in Sony BMG and formed a new Sony Music Entertainment in 2008. Since then, the company has undergone management changes.

Sony purchased digital music recognition company [[Gracenote]] for US$260&nbsp;million in 2008.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 April 2008 |title=Sony to Buy Gracenote Music Data Company |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/PCWorld/story?id=4706733 |access-date=11 February 2015 |website=ABC News |archive-date=2020-12-04  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204104836/https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/PCWorld/story?id=4706733 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Tribune Media Company]] acquired Gracenote from Sony in 2014 for $170&nbsp;million.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2013/12/23/sony-spins-out-gracenote/|title=Tribune To Acquire Sony Audio Recognition Unit Gracenote For $170 Million|date=23 December 2013|access-date=2020-09-03 |archive-date=2020-08-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200812232327/https://techcrunch.com/2013/12/23/sony-spins-out-gracenote/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Besides its record label, Sony operates other music businesses. In 1995, Sony merged its publisher with [[Michael Jackson]]'s [[ATV Music Publishing]], forming Sony/ATV Music Publishing. At the time, the publishing company was the second largest of its kind in the world. The company owns the publishing rights to over 4&nbsp;million compositions, including [[The Beatles]]' [[Lennon–McCartney]] catalogue, [[Bob Dylan]], [[Eminem]], [[Lady Gaga]], [[Sam Smith]], [[Ed Sheeran]], and [[Taylor Swift]].

In 2012, Sony/ATV acquired a majority stake in [[EMI Music Publishing]], becoming the world's largest music publishing company. In 2018, Sony bought the rest of the shares in the publisher, making it a wholly owned subsidiary.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Halperin |first=Shirley |date=30 June 2012 |title=Sold! EMI Music Publishing to Consortium Led by Sony/ATV, Michael Jackson Estate for $2.2 Billion |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/emi-music-publishing-sold-sony-atv-estate-michael-jackson-343848 |access-date=2020-04-28  |archive-date=2020-11-24  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124190516/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/emi-music-publishing-sold-sony-atv-estate-michael-jackson-343848 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2 May 2018 |title=Sony in $2.3 billion deal for EMI, becomes world's biggest music publisher |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-outlook-emi-idUSKCN1IN01F |access-date=12 July 2020 |archive-date=2020-08-07  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807110523/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-outlook-emi-idUSKCN1IN01F |url-status=live }}</ref> Since 2016, Sony owns all of Sony/ATV.<ref name="Sony Finalizes Acquisition of Michael Jackson Estate">{{Cite web |last=Christman |first=Ed |date=30 September 2012 |title=Sony Finalizes Acquisition of Michael Jackson Estate's Stake in Sony/ATV Publishing |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/7526542/sony-atv-michael-jackson-publishing-acquisition-completed |access-date=1 October 2016 |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |archive-date=2020-11-12  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112021346/https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/7526542/sony-atv-michael-jackson-publishing-acquisition-completed |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Anime ====
{{Main|Aniplex|Crunchyroll}}
[[File:SME Rokubancho Building.jpg|thumb|[[Aniplex]] headquarters in [[Chiyoda, Tokyo]], Japan]]

<!-- Don't add Sony Pictures Animation to this section. -->Sony's entering into the Japanese animation, or [[anime]], business happened in 1995 when its [[Sony Music Entertainment Japan]] (SMEJ) division established [[Aniplex]] as its subsidiary managing creative productions, which founded [[A-1 Pictures]], the first anime studio of Sony, ten years later. Since then, through group-wide and international ventures,<ref>{{Cite web|last=Moore|first=D. M.|date=9 December 2020|title=Sony's Funimation acquires anime streaming service Crunchyroll for $1.175 billion|url=https://www.polygon.com/2020/12/9/21547657/sonys-funimation-acquires-crunchyroll-deal-price-watching-anime|access-date=12 January 2021|website=Polygon|language=en|archive-date=2021-02-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202182322/https://www.polygon.com/2020/12/9/21547657/sonys-funimation-acquires-crunchyroll-deal-price-watching-anime|url-status=live}}</ref> Sony has solidified its position in the industry, elevating the business to what is called the "fourth pillar of its entertainment portfolio" according to ''[[The Nikkei]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sony sets out to conquer entertainment world with anime|url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Media-Entertainment/Sony-sets-out-to-conquer-entertainment-world-with-anime|access-date=12 January 2021|website=Nikkei Asia|language=en-GB|archive-date=2021-02-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210218130614/https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Media-Entertainment/Sony-sets-out-to-conquer-entertainment-world-with-anime|url-status=live}}</ref>

The anime business operations of Sony are scattered around the group, mainly in its Pictures and Music units, as follows: SMEJ's notable related businesses include Aniplex and its subsidiaries [[CloverWorks]] and A-1 Pictures; Aniplex and U.S.-headquartered [[Sony Pictures]] co-own U.S.-based anime distribution company [[Crunchyroll]], which since 2022, has become the successor company to [[Funimation]], which it acquired in 2017 and included subsidiaries such as [[Wakanim]] (absorbing into Crunchyroll itself) and Madman Anime (to be rebranded as [[Madman Anime|Crunchyroll Pty. Ltd.]])<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Spangler|first1=Todd|date=24 September 2019|title=Sony Merges Anime Streaming Businesses Under Funimation-Led Joint Venture (EXCLUSIVE)|url=https://variety.com/2019/digital/news/sony-anime-funimation-aniplex-joint-venture-1203346579/|access-date=12 January 2021|website=Variety|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-01-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210113140952/https://variety.com/2019/digital/news/sony-anime-funimation-aniplex-joint-venture-1203346579/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In December 2020, Funimation announced that it would buy [[AT&T]]'s animation business [[Crunchyroll]] for $1.175 billion, which would help the company to compete more globally with entertainment giants such as Netflix.<ref>{{Cite news|last2=Hu|first1=Makiko|last1=Yamazaki|first2=Krystal|date=10 December 2020|title=Sony to buy AT&T's anime business for $1.18 billion to expand global footprint|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-at-t-divestiture-idUSKBN28J3B7|access-date=10 December 2020|archive-date=2021-02-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210218015724/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-at-t-divestiture-idUSKBN28J3B7|url-status=live}}</ref> This acquisition was completed in August 2021.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web|last=Mateo|first=Alex|date=9 August 2021|title=Sony's Funimation Global Group Completes Acquisition of Crunchyroll from AT&T|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2021-08-09/sony-funimation-global-group-completes-acquisition-of-crunchyroll-from-at-t/.176073|access-date=9 August 2021|website=Anime News Network|language=en|archive-date=2021-08-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210809205048/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2021-08-09/sony-funimation-global-group-completes-acquisition-of-crunchyroll-from-at-t/.176073|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Financial services===
{{Main|Sony Financial Group}}
[[File:Otemachi Financial City Grand Cube1.jpg|thumb|upright|Headquarters of Sony Financial Group in [[Otemachi]], Tokyo, Japan]]
Sony Financial Group is a holding company for Sony's financial services business which includes [[Sony Life]] (in Japan and the Philippines), Sony Assurance, [[Sony Bank]], etc. The unit proved to be the most profitable of Sony's businesses in FY 2005, earning $1.7&nbsp;billion in profit.<ref name="Fackler" /> Sony Financial's low fees have aided the unit's popularity while threatening Sony's premium brand name.<ref name="Fackler" />

=== Others ===

====Electric vehicles and batteries====
{{Further|Sony Energy Devices Corporation|Sony Honda Mobility}}

A company behind the commercialization of [[lithium-ion battery]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rathi |first=Akshat |title=Winners of the 2019 Nobel Prize in chemistry developed lithium-ion batteries |url=https://qz.com/1724449/nobel-prize-in-chemistry-winners-developed-lithium-ion-batteries/ |access-date=3 August 2020 |website=Quartz |date=9 October 2019 |language=en |archive-date=2020-10-29  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029231704/https://qz.com/1724449/nobel-prize-in-chemistry-winners-developed-lithium-ion-batteries/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony had been exploring the possibility to manufacture the batteries for [[electric vehicle]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Joseph Volpe |title=Sony eyes electric car future, wants to soon sell you Li-ion batteries |url=https://www.engadget.com/2011/07/13/sony-eyes-electric-car-future-wants-to-soon-sell-you-li-ion-bat/ |website=Engadget |date=19 July 2019 |publisher=AOL |access-date=2017-09-14  |archive-date=2019-04-02  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402073550/https://www.engadget.com/2011/07/13/sony-eyes-electric-car-future-wants-to-soon-sell-you-li-ion-bat/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony CEO says will explore tie-ups in EV batteries – Electric Vehicle News |url=http://www.electric-vehiclenews.com/2012/04/sony-ceo-says-will-explore-tie-ups-in.html |website=electric-vehiclenews.com |access-date=2015-02-18  |archive-date=2020-12-01  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201044052/http://www.electric-vehiclenews.com/2012/04/sony-ceo-says-will-explore-tie-ups-in.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>[http://www.siliconrepublic.com/clean-tech/item/22648-sony-to-make-batteries-for Sony to make batteries for electric cars] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215223411/https://www.siliconrepublic.com/discovery/sony-to-make-batteries-for-electric-cars |date=2018-12-15}}. Silicon Republic.</ref> In 2014, Sony participated within [[NRG Energy]] [[eVgo]] [[Ready for Electric Vehicle]] (REV) program, for [[EV charging]] parking lots.<ref>{{Cite web |title=NRG eVgo Completes Largest Corporate Installation of Electric Vehicle Charging Stations in Southern California – EV News Report |url=http://evnewsreport.com/nrg-evgo-completes-largest-corporate-installation-electric-vehicle-charging-stations-southern-california/17948/ |website=EV News Report |access-date=2015-02-18  |archive-date=2015-10-16  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016033500/http://evnewsreport.com/nrg-evgo-completes-largest-corporate-installation-electric-vehicle-charging-stations-southern-california/17948/ |url-status=live }}</ref> However, the company then decided to sell its lithium-ion battery business to [[Murata Manufacturing]] in 2016.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=Signing of Memorandum of Understanding for the Transfer of Battery Business |date=28 July 2016 |publisher=[[Murata Manufacturing]] Co., Ltd. & Sony Corporation |url=http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/201607/16-0728E/index.html |access-date=6 October 2016 |archive-date=2019-01-19  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190119054945/https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/News/Press/201607/16-0728E/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2015, Sony invested $842,000 in [[ZMP INC.]], drawing speculations that it is contemplating developing [[self-driving car]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sony tests the waters for self-driving cars with a small investment|url=https://www.engadget.com/2015-02-16-sony-invests-in-self-driving-cars.html|access-date=16 January 2021|website=Engadget|date=19 July 2019|language=en|archive-date=2021-01-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122011628/https://www.engadget.com/2015-02-16-sony-invests-in-self-driving-cars.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In January 2020, Sony unveiled a concept electric car at the [[Consumer Electronics Show]], named [[Sony Vision-S|Vision-S]], designed in collaboration with components manufacturer [[Magna International]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=O'Kane |first=Sean |date=7 January 2020 |title=Sony surprises with an electric concept car called the Vision-S |work=The Verge |url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/1/6/21054270/sony-vision-s-electric-concept-car-ev-announcement-ces-2020 |access-date=2020-01-07  |archive-date=2021-01-31  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210131005609/https://www.theverge.com/2020/1/6/21054270/sony-vision-s-electric-concept-car-ev-announcement-ces-2020 |url-status=live }}</ref> At the occasion, Sony also stated its goal of developing technology for the automotive sector, especially concerning autonomous driving, sensors, and [[in-car entertainment]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 January 2020 |title=Sony Highlights its Evolution as a "Creative Entertainment Company with a Solid Foundation of Technology" at CES 2020 |url=https://presscentre.sony.eu/pressreleases/sony-highlights-its-evolution-as-a-creative-entertainment-company-with-a-solid-foundation-of-technology-at-ces-2020-2957905 |website=Sony Press Centre |access-date=2020-01-07  |archive-date=2020-12-30  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201230085316/http://presscentre.sony.eu/pressreleases/sony-highlights-its-evolution-as-a-creative-entertainment-company-with-a-solid-foundation-of-technology-at-ces-2020-2957905 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2022, Sony Group and [[Honda]] launched a joint venture for their electric vehicle partnership, [[Sony Honda Mobility]] (SHM), which would deliver its first electric vehicles by 2026 and sell them online, starting in the United States and Japan.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-10-15 |title=Honda & Sony establish SHM joint venture |url=https://www.electrive.com/2022/10/15/honda-sony-establish-shm-joint-venture/ |access-date=2022-10-29 |website=electrive.com |language=en-US |archive-date=2022-10-15  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221015120049/https://www.electrive.com/2022/10/15/honda-sony-establish-shm-joint-venture/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Sugiyama |first1=Satoshi |last2=Shiraki |first2=Maki |date=2022-10-13 |title=Sony, Honda aim to deliver premium EV with subscription fees in 2026 |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/sony-honda-mobility-venture-deliver-new-ev-us-spring-2026-2022-10-13/ |access-date=2022-10-29 |archive-date=2022-10-25  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221025073845/https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/sony-honda-mobility-venture-deliver-new-ev-us-spring-2026-2022-10-13/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The joint venture announced their new "Afeela" brand and its first prototype model at the [[Consumer Electronics Show#2023|CES 2023]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hawkins |first=Andrew J. |date=2023-01-05 |title=Sony and Honda just announced their new electric car brand, Afeela |url=https://www.theverge.com/2023/1/4/23539863/sony-honda-electric-vehicle-afeela-ces-reveal-photos |website=The Verge |language=en-US |access-date=2023-01-07  |archive-date=2023-01-07  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107011225/https://www.theverge.com/2023/1/4/23539863/sony-honda-electric-vehicle-afeela-ces-reveal-photos |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Corporate information==

===Institutional ownership===
Sony is a ''[[Kabushiki gaisha|kabushiki kaisha]]'' (joint stock company) listed on the [[Tokyo Stock Exchange]] in Japan with [[American depositary receipt]]s listed on [[New York Stock Exchange]]. {{As of|2023|March|31}}, the largest shareholders of Sony are as follows:<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-06-05 |title=ソニーグループ【6758】の大株主情報 |url=https://s.kabutan.jp/stocks/6758/stockholders/ |access-date=2024-06-23 |website=s.kabutan.jp |language=ja |archive-date=2024-06-23  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240623054542/https://s.kabutan.jp/stocks/6758/stockholders/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

* [[The Master Trust Bank of Japan]]–nominated [[investment trust]]s (main account; '''17.95'''%)
* [[Citibank]] (as depositary bank for [[American depositary receipt]] holders; 8.91%)
* [[Japan Trustee Services Bank]]–nominated investment trusts
** Main trust account (6.1%)
** Trust account 7 (2.4%)
** Trust account 5 (2.1%)
* [[Chase Bank|JPMorgan Chase Bank]] (3.2%)

===Business trends===
The key trends for Sony are (as of the financial year ending March 31):<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony Fundamentalanalyse {{!}} KGV {{!}} Kennzahlen |url=https://www.boerse.de/fundamental-analyse/Sony-Aktie/JP3435000009 |access-date=2024-08-01 |website=boerse.de |language=de |archive-date=2021-11-28  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128232318/https://www.boerse.de/fundamental-analyse/Sony-Aktie/JP3435000009 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-11-28 |title=Sony Fundamentals (2012-2020) |url=https://www.boerse.de/fundamental-analyse/Sony-Aktie/JP3435000009 |access-date=2024-08-01 |archive-date=2021-11-28  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128232318/https://www.boerse.de/fundamental-analyse/Sony-Aktie/JP3435000009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
!
!Revenue (¥ tr)
!Net profit (¥ bn)
!Total assets (¥ tr)
!Employees (k)
|-
|2012
|6.4
|<span style="color:red;">−456</span>
|13.2
|162
|-
|2013
|6.8
|43.0
|14.2
|146
|-
|2014
|7.7
|<span style="color:red;">−128</span>
|15.3
|140
|-
|2015
|8.2
|<span style="color:red;">−125</span>
|15.8
|131
|-
|2016
|8.1
|147
|16.6
|125
|-
|2017
|7.6
|73.2
|17.6
|128
|-
|2018
|8.5
|490
|19.0
|117
|-
|2019
|8.6
|916
|20.9
|114
|-
|2020
|8.2
|582
|23.0
|111
|-
|2021
|8.9
|1,171
|26.3
|109
|-
|2022
|9.9
|882
|30.4
|108
|-
|2023
|11.5
|937
|32.0
|113
|}
As of January 2024, Sony, one of the largest Japanese companies by market capitalization and operating profit, was valued at over $112&nbsp;billion. At the same period, it was also recognized as the most cash-rich Japanese company, with its [[Net cash flow|net cash reserves]] of ¥1.8&nbsp;trillion.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2 June 2020 |title=コロナに負けない｢金持ち企業｣トップ500社 {{!}} 企業ランキング |url=https://toyokeizai.net/articles/-/359062 |access-date=11 July 2020 |website=東洋経済オンライン |language=ja |archive-date=2020-11-28  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128231250/https://toyokeizai.net/articles/-/359062 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=7 January 2024|title=Sony Market capitalization|url=https://companiesmarketcap.com/sony/marketcap/|access-date=7 January 2024|archive-date=2024-01-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240107082623/https://companiesmarketcap.com/sony/marketcap/|url-status=live}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+Sony's revenue by different [[market segments]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony Global – FY2022 Financial Statements |url=https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/IR/library/presen/er/pdf/22q4_sony.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230623193253/https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/IR/library/presen/er/pdf/22q4_sony.pdf |archive-date=2023-06-23 |access-date=24 June 2023 |website=www.sony.com}}</ref>
!Segment
!Revenue FY 2022<br />(in billions of ¥)
!Revenue FY 2023<br />(in billions of ¥)
!Change
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |Game & network services
|2,739
|3,644
|905
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |Music
|1,116
|1,380
|264
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |Pictures
|1,238
|1,369
|  131
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |Entertainment, technology, & services
|2,339
|2,476
|  137
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |Imaging & sensing solutions
|1,076
|1,402
|326
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |Financial services
|1,533
|1,454
| −79
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |All other
|98.7
|87.6
| −11.1
|-
| style="text-align:left;" |Total
|9,921
|11,539
|1,618
|}The company was immensely profitable throughout the 1990s and early 2000s in part because of the success of its new [[PlayStation]] line. The company encountered financial difficulty in the mid- to late-2000s due to several factors: the [[Great Recession]], increased competition for PlayStation, and the [[2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami]]. The company faced three consecutive years of losses leading up to 2011.<ref name="FT">"Sony: Too Much make-Believe." FT.com (2011): n/a. ABI/INFORM Global; ProQuest Research Library. Web. 26 May 2012.</ref> While noting the negative effects of intervening circumstances such as natural disasters and fluctuating currency exchange rates, the ''[[Financial Times]]'' criticized the company for its "lack of resilience" and "inability to gauge the economy," voicing skepticism about Sony's revitalization efforts, given a lack of tangible results.<ref name="FT" />

In September 2000 Sony had a market capitalization of $100&nbsp;billion; but by December 2011 it had plunged to $18&nbsp;billion, reflecting falling prospects for Sony but also reflecting grossly inflated share prices of the '[[dot-com bubble]]' years.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fujimura |first=Naoko |date=12 December 2011 |title=Sony's Shopping Spree Is 'Wrong Direction' in Apple Battle: Tech |agency=[[Bloomberg News]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-13/stringer-s-shopping-spree-wrong-direction-for-sony-in-apple-battle-tech.html |access-date=18 December 2011 |archive-date=2014-10-19  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141019071743/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-13/stringer-s-shopping-spree-wrong-direction-for-sony-in-apple-battle-tech.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Net worth, as measured by stockholder equity, has steadily grown from $17.9&nbsp;billion in March 2002 to $35.6&nbsp;billion through December 2011.<ref>[http://www.gurufocus.com/financials.php?symbol=sne 10 Year Financials of sne&nbsp;– Sony Corp Adr] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200904021554/https://www.gurufocus.com/financials.php?symbol=sne |date=2020-09-04}}. Gurufocus.com. Retrieved on 25 April 2012.</ref> Earnings yield (inverse of the price to earnings ratio) has never been more than 5% and usually much less; thus Sony has always traded in over-priced ranges with the exception of the 2009 market bottom.

On 9 December 2008, Sony announced that it would be cutting 8,000 jobs, dropping 8,000 contractors and reducing its global manufacturing sites by 10% to save $1.1&nbsp;billion per year.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McCurry |first=Justin |date=9 December 2008 |title=Sony to cut 8,000 jobs worldwide |work=The Guardian |location=London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2008/dec/09/sony-job-cuts |access-date=23 May 2010 |archive-date=2020-08-07  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807074027/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2008/dec/09/sony-job-cuts |url-status=live }}</ref>

In April 2012, Sony announced that it would reduce its workforce by 10,000 (6% of its employee base) as part of CEO [[Kaz Hirai]]'s effort to get the company back into the black. This came after a loss of 520&nbsp;billion yen (roughly US$6.36&nbsp;billion) for fiscal 2012, the worst since the company was founded. Accumulation loss for the past four years was 919.32&nbsp;billion-yen.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony expected to slash 10,000 jobs |url=http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57411107-93/sony-expected-to-slash-10000-jobs/?tag=cnetRiver |access-date=9 April 2012 |archive-date=2021-02-19  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219133037/https://www.cnet.com/news/sony-expected-to-slash-10000-jobs/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Yasu |first1=Mariko |last2=Ozasa |first2=Shunichi |date=11 April 2012 |title=Sony, Sharp Losing $11 Billion Leaves Investors Let Down |agency=[[Bloomberg News]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-10/sony-widens-net-loss-estimate-to-520-billion-yen.html |access-date=2017-03-11  |archive-date=2014-11-30  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141130110052/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-10/sony-widens-net-loss-estimate-to-520-billion-yen.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony planned to increase its marketing expenses by 30% in 2012.<ref>{{Cite news |date=7 June 2012 |title=Sony ups ad spend to Rs.450 cr |work=[[The Hindu]] |url=http://www.thehindu.com/business/companies/article3497657.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120610233952/http://www.thehindu.com/business/companies/article3497657.ece |archive-date=10 June 2012}}</ref> 1,000 of the jobs cut come from the company's mobile phone unit's workforce. 700 jobs will be cut in the 2012–2013 fiscal year and the remaining 300 in the following fiscal year.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Ewing |first1=Adam |last2=Yasu |first2=Mariko |date=23 August 2012 |title=Sony to Cut 1,000 Jobs to Reduce Costs at Mobile Unit |agency=[[Bloomberg News]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-22/sony-may-cut-1-000-jobs-at-swedish-mobile-unit-sydsvenskan-says.html |access-date=2017-03-11  |archive-date=2014-10-19  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141019071739/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-22/sony-may-cut-1-000-jobs-at-swedish-mobile-unit-sydsvenskan-says.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony had revenues of ¥6.493&nbsp;trillion in 2012 and maintained large reserves of cash, with ¥895&nbsp;billion on hand as of 2012. In May 2012, Sony's market capitalization was valued at about $15&nbsp;billion.<ref>{{Cite news |date=10 May 2012 |title=Sony sees return to profit, aims to halve TV losses |work=[[Reuters]] |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-results-idUSBRE8490A120120510 |access-date=2021-07-05  |archive-date=2021-08-18  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210818073318/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-results-idUSBRE8490A120120510 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In January 2013, Sony announced it was selling its US headquarters building for $1.1&nbsp;billion to a consortium led by real estate developer The Chetrit Group.<ref>{{Cite news |date=18 January 2013 |title=Sony to sell its U.S. headquarters building for $1.1 billion |work=Reuters |url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/us-sony-building-idUKBRE90H03Q20130118 |access-date=2021-07-05  |archive-date=2019-04-02  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402154417/https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-sony-building-idUKBRE90H03Q20130118 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

On 28 January 2014, [[Moody's Investors Service]]s dropped Sony's credit rating to Ba1—"judged to have speculative elements and a significant credit risk"—saying that the company's "profitability is likely to remain weak and volatile."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chilson |first=Morgan |title=Labels Sony Credit Rating 'Junk' Amid Lower Demand |url=http://www.moneynews.com/TheWire/sony-moodys-junk-credit/2014/01/28/id/549536 |access-date=28 January 2014 |website=Moneynews |archive-date=23 October 2014  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141023141458/http://www.moneynews.com/TheWire/sony-moodys-junk-credit/2014/01/28/id/549536/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

On 6 February 2014, Sony announced it would trim as many as 5,000 jobs as it attempts to sell its PC business and focus on mobile and tablets.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Sony to cut as many as 5,000 jobs, unload Vaio |work=USA Today |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/02/06/sony-selling-vaio-pc-business/5248885/ |access-date=6 February 2014 |archive-date=2020-12-02  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201202034906/https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/02/06/sony-selling-vaio-pc-business/5248885/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2014,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Greenway |first=David |date=2 October 2014 |title=Sony to close South African TV, HiFi and camera division |url=https://www.htxt.co.za/2014/10/29/sony-to-close-south-african-tv-hifi-and-camera-division/ |access-date=4 July 2019 |website=htxt.africa |language=en-GB |archive-date=2020-11-09  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109172021/https://www.htxt.co.za/2014/10/29/sony-to-close-south-african-tv-hifi-and-camera-division/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony South Africa closed its TV, Hi-Fi and camera divisions<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony rethinks SA strategy amid huge loss |url=https://businesstech.co.za/news/hardware/72138/sony-rethinks-sa-strategy-amid-huge-loss/ |access-date=4 July 2019 |website=businesstech.co.za |language=en-US |archive-date=2020-10-23  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023052428/https://businesstech.co.za/news/hardware/72138/sony-rethinks-sa-strategy-amid-huge-loss/ |url-status=live }}</ref> with the purpose of reconsidering its local distribution model and, in 2017, it returned<ref>{{Cite web |date=6 April 2017 |title=Sony launches first SA store |url=https://www.fin24.com/Tech/Gadgets/sony-launches-first-sa-store-20170406 |access-date=4 July 2019 |website=Fin24 |archive-date=2019-01-17  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190117123437/https://www.fin24.com/Tech/Gadgets/sony-launches-first-sa-store-20170406 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony photo gear back in South Africa – With Black Friday 2017 vouchers |url=https://mybroadband.co.za/news/gadgets/239278-sony-photo-gear-back-in-south-africa-with-black-friday-2017-vouchers.html |access-date=4 July 2019 |language=en-US |archive-date=2020-11-09  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109033806/https://mybroadband.co.za/news/gadgets/239278-sony-photo-gear-back-in-south-africa-with-black-friday-2017-vouchers.html |url-status=live }}</ref> facilitated by Premium Brand Distributors (Pty) Ltd.

In November 2018, Sony posted its earning report for the second quarter showing it has lost about US$480 million in the mobile phone division,<ref>{{Cite web|date=1 November 2018|title=Sony mobile is losing more than gaming division is gaining (which is a lot of money)|url=https://www.androidauthority.com/sony-mobile-earnings-q2-2018-921061/|access-date=16 January 2021|website=Android Authority|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-01-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122002308/https://www.androidauthority.com/sony-mobile-earnings-q2-2018-921061/|url-status=live}}</ref> prompting another round of downsizing in the unit, including the closure of a manufacturing plant and halving of its workforce.<ref>{{Cite web|last=McCaskill|first=Steve |date=29 March 2019 |title=Sony shuts China smartphone plant|url=https://www.techradar.com/news/sony-shuts-china-smartphone-plant|access-date=16 January 2021|website=TechRadar |language=en|archive-date=2021-01-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122051937/https://www.techradar.com/news/sony-shuts-china-smartphone-plant|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Vasile|first=Cosmin|title=Report: Sony to lay off half of its mobile division staff by 2020 (2,000 people)|url=https://www.phonearena.com/news/Sony-cuts-half-smartphone-division-2020-report_id114940|access-date=16 January 2021|website=Phone Arena|date=29 March 2019|language=en-US|archive-date=2021-01-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122041408/https://www.phonearena.com/news/Sony-cuts-half-smartphone-division-2020-report_id114940|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Community engagement===
* '''EYE SEE project'''<br />Sony Corporation is actively involved in the EYE SEE project conducted by [[UNICEF]]. EYE SEE digital photography workshops have been run for children in Argentina, Tunisia, Mali, South Africa, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Rwanda, Liberia and Pakistan.<ref>{{Cite web |title=UNICEF and Sony photo workshop promotes rights with Darwin's indigenous youth |url=http://www.unicef.org.au/Media/Media-Releases/April-2013/UNICEF-and-Sony-photo-workshop-promotes-rights-wit.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130516162216/http://www.unicef.org.au/Media/Media-Releases/April-2013/UNICEF-and-Sony-photo-workshop-promotes-rights-wit.aspx |archive-date=16 May 2013 |website=unicef.org.au}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=16 June 2011 |title=Seeing Mali: a digital project for children – in pictures |url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/gallery/2011/jun/16/mali-digital-camera-project-in-pictures |website=The Guardian |access-date=2016-12-13  |archive-date=2020-10-10  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201010003821/https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/gallery/2011/jun/16/mali-digital-camera-project-in-pictures |url-status=live }}</ref>
* '''South Africa Mobile Library Project'''<br />Sony assists The South Africa Primary Education Support Initiative (SAPESI) through financial donations and children book donations to the South Africa Mobile Library Project.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sony helps S African mobile library project |url=http://www.japantoday.com/category/business/view/sony-helps-s-african-mobile-library-project |access-date=11 February 2015 |website=japantoday.com |date=29 May 2008 |archive-date=2016-03-04  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304113934/http://www.japantoday.com/category/business/view/sony-helps-s-african-mobile-library-project |url-status=live }}</ref>
* '''The Sony Canada Charitable Foundation'''<br />The Sony Canada Charitable Foundation (SCCF) is a non-profit organization which supports three key charities; the Make-A-Wish Canada, the United Way of Canada and the EarthDay and ECOKIDS program.
* '''Sony Foundation and You Can'''<br />After the [[2010–11 Queensland floods|2011 Queensland floods]] and [[Black Saturday bushfires|Victorian bushfires]], Sony Music released benefit albums with money raised going to the Sony Foundation.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cashmere |first=Paul |date=5 October 2012 |title=Sony Foundation Funds Salvos Sound Point Centre In Goodna |work=noise11.com |url=http://www.noise11.com/news/sony-foundation-funds-salvos-sound-point-centre-in-goodna-20121005 |access-date=11 February 2015 |archive-date=2020-11-01  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101110721/http://www.noise11.com/news/sony-foundation-funds-salvos-sound-point-centre-in-goodna-20121005 |url-status=live }}</ref> You Can is the youth cancer program of Sony Foundation.<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 October 2014 |title=Sony Foundation raises over $880k with Wharf4Ward |url=http://www.mcvpacific.com/news/read/the-sony-foundation-raises-over-880k-with-wharf4ward/0140322 |website=mcvpacific.com |access-date=12 February 2015  |archive-date=19 September 2017  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170919052400/http://www.mcvpacific.com/news/read/the-sony-foundation-raises-over-880k-with-wharf4ward/0140322 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* '''Open Planet Ideas Crowdsourcing Project'''<br />Sony launched its Open Planet Ideas Crowdsourcing Project, in partnership with the [[World Wildlife Fund]] and the design group, [[IDEO]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Beavis |first=Simon |date=26 May 2011 |title=Sony – engaging untapped audience through crowdsourcing |work=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/sony-untapped-audience-crowdsourcing-project |access-date=2016-12-13  |archive-date=2020-12-03  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203140230/https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/sony-untapped-audience-crowdsourcing-project |url-status=live }}</ref>
* '''Street Football Stadium Project'''<br />On the occasion of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Sony partnered with {{Proper name|streetfootballworld}} and launched the Street Football Stadium Project to support football-based educational programmes in local communities across Latin America and Brazil.<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 March 2014 |title=Stadiums to go: streetfootballworld partners with Sony to support Brazilian and Latin American communities – |url=http://www.streetfootballworld.org/latest/blog/stadiums-go-streetfootballworld-partners-sony-support-local-communities#sthash.y2p34iqv.dpuf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150211234600/http://www.streetfootballworld.org/latest/blog/stadiums-go-streetfootballworld-partners-sony-support-local-communities |archive-date=11 February 2015 |website=streetfootballworld}}</ref> More than 25 Street Stadiums were developed since the project's inception.<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 March 2014 |title=Sony Street Stadiums – |url=http://www.streetfootballworld.org/project/sony-street-stadiums |website=streetfootballworld |access-date=10 April 2016  |archive-date=6 November 2018  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181106202512/https://www.streetfootballworld.org/project/sony-street-stadiums |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* '''The Sony Global Relief Fund for COVID-19'''<br />During the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], Sony launched a relief fund in line with other media and tech companies to aid individuals working in the medical, education, and entertainment sectors.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tartaglione |first=Nancy |date=2 April 2020 |title=Sony Establishes $100M COVID-19 Global Relief Fund |url=https://deadline.com/2020/04/sony-launches-100-million-global-relief-fund-coronavirus-covid-19-1202898470/ |access-date=16 September 2020 |website=Deadline |language=en-US |archive-date=2020-12-28  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201228031414/https://deadline.com/2020/04/sony-launches-100-million-global-relief-fund-coronavirus-covid-19-1202898470/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Criticism & controversies==
Over the years, Sony has faced a number of allegations and criticism pertaining to their corporate behavior, often leading to legal proceedings and customer dissatisfaction.

In August 2000, then Sony Pictures Entertainment U.S. senior vice president Steve Heckler was quoted saying "The industry will take whatever steps it needs to protect itself and protect its revenue streams ...".<ref>Anastasi, Michael A. [http://www.nyfairuse.org/sony.xhtml "Sony Exec: We Will Beat Napster"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090318115847/http://www.nyfairuse.org/sony.xhtml |date=March 18, 2009 }}, ''New Yorkers For Fair Use'', August 17, 2000. Retrieved November 13, 2006.</ref> Sony then worked on a [[Sony BMG copy protection rootkit scandal|DRM system that works like a rootkit]] in order to enforce its copyright claims upon users of music CDs.

With respect to Sony's gaming consoles, subsequent updates are released to the said consoles, many of which strip the user of some of the originally advertised features in order to save the company some licensing fees or protect itself from the modding community. 
On April 1, 2010, Sony released a patch for the [[PS3]] that would remove [[OtherOS]] from being installed onto the system after hackers were looking for ways to exploit OtherOS in order to run [[PlayStation 3 homebrew|homebrew software]]. Then on January 12, 2011, Sony filled lawsuits against ''[[geohot]]'' and ''fail0verflow'' for their efforts on exploiting the PS3.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-sony-vs-jailbreak-hackers|title=Sony to Geohot: See you in court|date=January 12, 2011|access-date=January 12, 2011|publisher=[[Eurogamer]]|archive-date=2021-03-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210328215624/https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-sony-vs-jailbreak-hackers|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/46739945/Motion-for-TRO |title=Motion for TRO |publisher=Scribd.com |date=2011-01-12 |access-date=2011-03-20 |archive-date=2016-03-07  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307095354/https://www.scribd.com/doc/46739945/Motion-for-TRO |url-status=live }}</ref>
In December 2023, Sony announced that it will remove the Discovery app and its content, even if previously paid for, from its gaming consoles.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/en_au/news/playstation-to-take-back-paid-digital-content-from-players-libraries-due-to-licensing-issues-3553377 |title=PlayStation to remove hundreds of TV shows from players' libraries due to "licensing issues" |publisher=NME.com |date=2023-12-04 |access-date=2023-12-16 |archive-date=2023-12-16  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231216124700/https://www.nme.com/en_au/news/playstation-to-take-back-paid-digital-content-from-players-libraries-due-to-licensing-issues-3553377 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Environmental record===
In November 2011, Sony was ranked ninth (jointly with Panasonic) in [[Greenpeace]]'s Guide to Greener Electronics.<ref>{{cite web |date=November 2011 |title=Guide to Greener Electronics 17th Edition |url=https://www.greenpeace.org/archive-international/en/campaigns/detox/electronics/Guide-to-Greener-Electronics/Previous-editions/How-the-companies-line-up-17/ |access-date=20 August 2018 |website=Greenpeace International |archive-date=2021-02-19  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219133250/https://wayback.archive-it.org/9650/20200408025458/http://p3-raw.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/detox/electronics/Guide-to-Greener-Electronics/Previous-editions/How-the-companies-line-up-17/ |url-status=live }}</ref> This chart grades major electronics companies on their environmental work. The company scored 3.6/10, incurring a penalty point for comments it has made in opposition to energy efficiency standards in California. It also risks a further penalty point in future editions for being a member of trade associations that have commented against energy efficiency standards.<ref name="Guide to Greener Electronics">{{cite web |title=Guide to Greener Electronics |url=http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/climate-change/cool-it/Guide-to-Greener-Electronics/ |access-date=16 November 2011 |website=Greenpeace International |archive-date=2011-11-12  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111112022636/http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/climate-change/cool-it/Guide-to-Greener-Electronics/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Together with [[Philips]], Sony receives the highest score for energy policy advocacy after calling on the EU to adopt an unconditional 30% reduction target for greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. Meanwhile, it receives full marks for the efficiency of its products.<ref name="Guide to Greener Electronics" /> In June 2007, Sony ranked 14th on the [[Greenpeace]] guide.<ref>{{cite web |date=27 June 2007 |title=Greener electronics Sony ranking: Fourth Edition |url=https://www.greenpeace.org/archive-international/en/publications/reports/greener-electronics-so-4/ |access-date=20 August 2018 |website=Greenpeace International |archive-date=2021-02-19  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219141100/https://wayback.archive-it.org/9650/20200408140026/http://p3-raw.greenpeace.org/international/en/publications/reports/greener-electronics-so-4/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Sony fell from its earlier 11th-place ranking due to Greenpeace's claims that Sony had double standards in their waste policies.<ref>{{cite news |last=Samson |first=Ted |date=9 July 2007 |title=Sony hits bottom of Greenpeace eco rankings |work=InfoWorld |url=http://www.infoworld.com/d/green-it/sony-hits-bottom-greenpeace-eco-rankings-649 |access-date=5 October 2010 |archive-date=2014-07-07  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140707184909/http://www.infoworld.com/d/green-it/sony-hits-bottom-greenpeace-eco-rankings-649 |url-status=live }}</ref>

{{As of|2018|05}} Greenpeace's 2017 Guide to Greener Electronics rated Sony approximately in the middle among electronics manufacturers with a grade of D+.<ref>{{cite web |title=Guide to Greener Electronics (2017) |url=https://www.greenpeace.org/archive-international/en/campaigns/climate-change/cool-it/Guide-to-Greener-Electronics/ |access-date=17 May 2018 |website=Greenpeace International |language=en-GB |archive-date=2019-11-15  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191115125815/https://www.greenpeace.org/archive-international/en/campaigns/climate-change/cool-it/Guide-to-Greener-Electronics/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Since 1976, Sony has had an Environmental Conference.<ref>{{cite web |title=History of Environmental Activities at Sony |url=http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/Environment/activities/history/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080208124950/http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/Environment/activities/history/index.html |archive-date=8 February 2008 |access-date=3 January 2022}}. Retrieved 7 July 2011.</ref> Sony's policies address their effects on global warming, the environment, and resources. They are taking steps to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases that they put out as well as regulating the products they get from their suppliers in a process that they call "green procurement".<ref>{{cite web |title=Sony Group Environmental: Vision |url=http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/Environment/activities/vision/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071127044020/http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/Environment/activities/vision/index.html |archive-date=27 November 2007 |access-date=3 January 2022}}. Web.archive.org. (27 November 2007). Retrieved 7 July 2011.</ref> Sony has said that they have signed on to have about 75 percent of their [[Sony Building (New York)|Sony Building]] running on [[geothermal power]]. The "Sony Take Back Recycling Program" allow consumers to recycle the electronics products that they buy from Sony by taking them to [[eCycle (Recycling)]] drop-off points around the U.S. The company has also developed a biobattery that runs on sugars and carbohydrates that works similarly to the way living creatures work. This is the most powerful small [[biobattery]] to date.<ref>[http://www.techgadgets.in/misc-gadgets/2007/24/sony-develops-worlds-most-powerful-sugar-based-bio-battery-prototype/ Sony develops World's Most Powerful Sugar-based Bio Battery Prototype] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101125807/http://www.techgadgets.in/misc-gadgets/2007/24/sony-develops-worlds-most-powerful-sugar-based-bio-battery-prototype/ |date=2016-01-01}}. Techgadgets.in (24 August 2007). Retrieved 7 July 2011.</ref>

In 2000, Sony faced criticism for a document entitled "NGO Strategy" that was leaked to the press. The document involved the company's surveillance of environmental activists in an attempt to plan how to counter their movements. It specifically mentioned environmental groups that were trying to pass laws that held electronics-producing companies responsible for the cleanup of the toxic chemicals contained in their merchandise.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Knight |first=Danielle |date=22 September 2000 |title=Sony's PR War on Activists |work=Mother Jones |url=http://motherjones.com/environment/2000/09/sonys-pr-war-activists |access-date=5 October 2010 |archive-date=2020-10-24  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024125232/https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2000/09/sonys-pr-war-activists/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Cartel===
In 2007 an investigation launched in 2002 by the [[European Commission]] culminated in Sony, [[Fujifilm|Fuji]] and [[Maxell]] receiving a total of 110 million US dollar fine for fixing professional videotape prices between 1999 and 2002 through regular meetings and other illegal contracts; at the time the three corporations shared a combined 85% control of the market. Sony's part of the fine was raised by a third for trying to obstruct the investigation by refusing to answer inquiries made by the EU officials and shredding of evidence during the multiple law-enforcement raids.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/tech-eu-video-fines-dc-idUKBFA00056020071120|title=EU fines Sony, others for videotape price fixes|date=20 November 2007|website=Reuters|access-date=22 November 2022|archive-date=2022-11-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221123183738/https://www.reuters.com/article/tech-eu-video-fines-dc-idUKBFA00056020071120|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://bbj.hu/budapest/culture/awards/eu-fines-sony-fuji-maxell-for-videotape-price-fixing10993|title=EU fines Sony, Fuji, Maxell for videotape price fixing|date=21 November 2007|website=Budapest Business Journal|access-date=22 November 2022|archive-date=2022-11-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221123183740/https://bbj.hu/budapest/culture/awards/eu-fines-sony-fuji-maxell-for-videotape-price-fixing10993|url-status=live}}</ref> During the year 2001 prior to the investigation Sony sold professional videotapes for a total of €115 million inside the EU.

==See also==
{{Portal bar|Japan|Technology|Telecommunication|Companies|Electronics|Film|Music|Video games}}
* [[List of acquisitions by Sony]]
* [[List of assets owned by Sony]]
* [[List of companies of Japan]]
* [[List of libraries owned by Sony]]
{{Clear}}

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{Cite book |last1=Morita |first1=Akio |author-link1=Akio Morita |title=Made in Japan: Akio Morita and Sony |title-link=Made in Japan (biography) |last2=Reingold |first2=Edwin M. |last3=Shimomura |first3=Mitsuko |publisher=Dutton |year=1986 |isbn=978-0-525-24465-3 |location=New York}}
* {{Cite book |last=Nathan |first=John |title=Sony: The Private Life |publisher=Houghton Mifflin |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-618-12694-1 |location=New York}}
* {{Cite AV media |people=[[Terry Sanders|Sanders, Terry]] (director); Notehelfer, Fred (host) |title=The Japan Project: Made in Japan |title-link=The Japan Project: Made in Japan |type=documentary film |location=Santa Monica, California |publisher=American Film Foundation }}
* {{Cite book |last=Schiffer |first=Michael B. |title=The Portable Radio in American Life |date=1991 |publisher=University of Arizona Press |isbn=978-0-8165-4768-5 }}

==External links==
{{Sister project links|Sony}}
* {{Official website}}

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