This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Jburati (talk | contribs) at 01:09, 30 August 2003 (added the meaning of the kanji writting). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 01:09, 30 August 2003 by Jburati (talk | contribs) (added the meaning of the kanji writting)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)
Sony (In katakana: ソニー ; In Kanji: 新力 this writing has the meaning of 'new power') is a consumer electronics giant based in Tokyo, Japan. It was founded on May 7, 1946 as the Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering with about 20 employees. Their first consumer product, in the late 1940s, was a rice boiler. As it grew into a major international corporation, Sony acquired other companies with longer histories, including Columbia Records (the oldest continuously produced brand name in recorded sound, dating back to 1888).
The name was coined by founder Akio Morita to convey "sound" and "sonny" for youth and energy.
In 2000 Sony had sales of US $63 billion and 189,700 employees. Sony acquired Aiwa corporation in 2002.
Noteworthy products
Sony Music Entertainment
In 1988, Sony acquired CBS (Columbia) Records Group from CBS. It was renamed "Sony Music Entertainment".
Movies & Theaters
- Columbia Tri-Star
- Columbia Pictures
- Tri-Star Pictures
- Jim Henson Productions (partial interest)
- Mandalay Entertainment (partial interest)
- Phoenix Pictures (partial interest)
- Sony Pictures Classics
- Sony Pictures Entertainment
- Columbia-Tri Star Home Video
- Sony/Lowes Theaters
- Magic Johnson Theaters
- Loews - Star Theaters