Summary
Sony was once synonym with innovation, then it slipped to become known for good quality hardware. However, value is in content and services to consumers, and Sony has found an ally to do just that.
Analysis
Sony created a number of brands in various consumer electronics, but did not manage to capitalise on this to develop services and value-add to consumers.
The closest it got to it was with the Sony-Ericsson venture, bringing over the Walkman brand, Cyber shot, and a few others created mainly for the mid-range mobile phones running on its proprietary operating system. Sony missed the point in developing its consumer electronics products as stand alone projects. From the marketing standpoint, a lot more could be done, leveraging brands and offering a complete solution to consumers.
Work in that direction started with the Digital Living Network Alliance, but consumer awareness is not high enough to make a difference yet.
Sony needs a partner to bring back innovation and to get closer to consumers.
A deal on the browser is interesting, but it is noteworthy that both Sony and Google Chrome only have a small market share in their respective segment, so how much of an impact can all Vaio PCs sold in the US with Chrome as the default browser have?
On another product line, the electronic book reader, Sony aims to compete with Kindle thanks to Google promises of openness and thereby attracting other large players.
Same for mobile phones, with Sony-Ericsson Android phone projects.
Sony needs to develop its own ecosystem which will give it an edge, and a family of products which interact with each other, focused on consumers. This will include Google services, but it cannot be the only road to explore if they want to fight their increasing competition.
The closest it got to it was with the Sony-Ericsson venture, bringing over the Walkman brand, Cyber shot, and a few others created mainly for the mid-range mobile phones running on its proprietary operating system. Sony missed the point in developing its consumer electronics products as stand alone projects. From the marketing standpoint, a lot more could be done, leveraging brands and offering a complete solution to consumers.
Work in that direction started with the Digital Living Network Alliance, but consumer awareness is not high enough to make a difference yet.
Sony needs a partner to bring back innovation and to get closer to consumers.
A deal on the browser is interesting, but it is noteworthy that both Sony and Google Chrome only have a small market share in their respective segment, so how much of an impact can all Vaio PCs sold in the US with Chrome as the default browser have?
On another product line, the electronic book reader, Sony aims to compete with Kindle thanks to Google promises of openness and thereby attracting other large players.
Same for mobile phones, with Sony-Ericsson Android phone projects.
These steps show clearly the difficult situation Sony is in:
- Hardware focused
- No services proposition
- Another change in direction for its mobile activities, with no success from either Symbian or Microsoft work
Sony needs to develop its own ecosystem which will give it an edge, and a family of products which interact with each other, focused on consumers. This will include Google services, but it cannot be the only road to explore if they want to fight their increasing competition.
This author consults with leading institutions through GLG
Analyses are solely the work of the authors and have not been edited or endorsed by GLG.
