One cannot possibly think of a household or workplace which doesn’t house an item produced by this Japanese conglomerate. Be it the tech-savvy phone in your pocket or the envy-worthy home theater, Sony has been reputed to produce the finest electronic items for consumers and professional markets.
Today, Sony has expanded to multifarious avenues like Gaming, Entertainment, Financial Services and semiconductor sales (trivia: Sony is among the worldwide top 20 Semiconductor sale leaders).
The story of Sony has a very interesting start. Sony found its beginning in the wake of World War II in the war plagued Japan. In 1946, Masaru Ibuka started a radio repair shop electronics shop in a bomb-damaged department store building in Tokyo with a total of eight employees. The next year, he was joined by his colleague, Akio Morita, and they founded a company called Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo (Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corporation). From early attempts at creating products like the rice-cooker to the later success of creating Japan’s first magnetic recorder, the innovative company went on to create other hit products which won the company widespread recognition and international acclaim as a truly global company known for its quality and innovative products.
In the early 1950s, Ibuka traveled in the United States and heard about the invention of transistor. While most American companies were researching the transistor for its military applications, Ibuka and Morita looked to apply it to communications and it commercially successful. This gave rise to Japan’s first tape recorder- Type G which later hijacked the world market!
And then there was no looking back. They evolved with more efficient, handy and better technology and introduced a plethora of recorders and tube radios. Significant product milestones included Japan’s first transistor radio (1955), Trinitron colour television (1968), Walkman personal stereo (1979), Handycam videocamera (1989), PlayStation (1994), Blu-ray Disc recorder (2003) and PlayStation 3 (2006).
They not only captured their home market but hijacked the abroad as well with exports reaching more than 20 countries in the first decade!
Sony now consists of Sony Corporation (holding and electronics), Sony Computer Entertainment (game), Sony Pictures Entertainment (motion pictures), Sony Music Entertainment (music), Sony/ATV Music Publishing (music publishing), Sony Financial Holdings (financial services) and others which continue to help Sony’s popularity soar in the world market.
Sony is one of the best example of passion driven excellence where two innovative and inquisitive minds storm the world with sheer determination and hardwork. Kudos!
So, will you be the next person to start a Sony?
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- Madalsa Singh
