List of Companies in the Sony Corporation

Last Updated : 17 Apr, 2024

Sony Corporation is one of the well-known Japanese multinational conglomerates. With its presence across many industries, it has successfully positioned itself as a major company. Back from the days of a mere electronics manufacturer, this company has grown to the point that it is reaching beyond its traditional limits, moving into areas that are completely different from the ones it used to occupy.

Sony has branched into electronics, gaming, entertainment, financial services, and semiconductors, Sony has carved a niche for itself as a well-diversified multinational entity. Its brand awareness and approach have been the driving force behind its triumph in all sectors, be it products or services.

Table of Content

Sony Company Highlights
Sony Company History
Sony’s Market Capitalisation Over The Years
Sony Company Business List
Business Owned By Sony
Electronics Products & Solutions
Game & Network Services
Pictures and Music
Electric Vehicles and Batteries
Conclusion
List of Companies in the Sony Corporation- FAQs

Sony Company Highlights

Year Of Establishment	1946
Headquarters	Minato City, Tokyo, Japan
Sony Founder	Akio Morita, Masaru Ibuka
CEO	Kenichiro Yoshida
Market Capitalization	$108.05 billion
Revenue	$85.4 billion (2023)

Sony Company History

In 1946, two visionaries – Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita – founded Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo K.K. with very little startup money. But their dreams were big and wanted to create a factory that boosted Japanese culture through clever tech products.

This marked the humble start of what became the Sony empire. Over the years, Sony became known for its mind-blowing inventions. They consistently unveiled “firsts” that amazed people across Japan and globally. A few major milestones stand out – like the world’s first Japanese transistor radio called the TR-55, the iconic portable Walkman music player, and the game-changing CDP-101 compact disc player that helped CDs take over.

From those modest beginnings operating out of a small Tokyo workspace, Sony skyrocketed into a true international leader. Now Sony reigns as a dominant force in both consumer electronics and entertainment worldwide. All thanks to that initial daring vision to innovate.

Sony’s Market Capitalisation Over The Years

As of March 2024, Sony’s market cap stands at $108.05 billion. This tech titan ranks as the world’s 136th most valuable company however it has witnessed fluctuations in valuation over the past few years.

In 2023, the cap was at $116.52 billion whereas in 2022, its market cap was at $96.52 billion. The 2024 figure shows a 21.35% year-over-year decrease. However, 2022 marked an even lower market cap of $20 billion. Compared to that, 2024’s valuation represents a 38.41% increase.

Sony Company Business List

Here is the list of companies owned by Sony Business Group:

Company Name	Founded	Experience	Notable Brands	Revenue
Sony Interactive Entertainment	1993	Gaming and entertainment	PlayStation, PlayStation Studios, and PlayStation Productions	$500 million+
Sony Pictures Entertainment	1987	Film and television production	Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures Animation, and Screen Gems	$9.5 billion
Sony Music Group	1929	Music production and distribution	Sony Music Entertainment	$2.77 billion
Sony Semiconductor Solutions	2015	Semiconductor technology		$7.74 billion
Sony Financial Group	2004	Financial services	Sony Life Insurance, Sony Bank, and Sony Assurance	$20.1 billion
Sony Electronics Corporation	1946	Consumer electronics	Sony Bravia, Sony Xperia, and Sony Alpha	$82 billion

Business Owned By Sony

Electronics Products & Solutions

1. Audio

Sony revolutionised portable music with the iconic Walkman in 1979 – the world’s first portable player. This fueled a shift in listening habits, allowing people to enjoy music anytime, anywhere through lightweight headphones.

The Walkman brand encompasses Sony’s digital audio/video players and former mobile phones too. It pioneered formats like Memory Stick for portable music storage. Sony continues leading audio innovation with its Walkman players, noise-cancelling technology, and professional-grade microphones and headphones ethically manufactured by specially-abled employees.

2. Video

Sony made significant television innovations with the world’s first all-transistor TV in 1959. Its iconic Trinitron CRT televisions were hugely popular for decades. While discontinuing Trinitron, Sony led the transition to LCD and OLED flat panels under its BRAVIA brand.

Despite losing the global TV market leadership, Sony persisted – launching the first OLED TV in 2007 and pioneering 4K OLED in 2013. It restructured the loss-making TV business through partnerships. Sony’s BRAVIA range now offers premium LCD, OLED and projection TVs alongside home theatre systems. Its expertise spans video technologies from legacy formats to modern Ultra HD.

3. Photography and Videography

Sony has made a diverse range of digital cameras for all needs. Its iconic Cyber-shot lineup provides quality point-and-shoot cameras, while the Alpha series caters to advanced photographers with DSLRs and mirrorless cameras.

A pioneer in imaging technology, Sony demonstrated the Mavica – the first digital camera prototype – way back in 1981. It later acquired Konica Minolta’s camera business to expand its DSLR offerings. Sony’s mirrorless cameras like the game-changing Alpha 7 full-frame models have been widely acclaimed. The Alpha 6000 even became the best-selling mirrorless camera ever. Sony also manufactures professional-grade camcorders and cinema cameras under its prestigious CineAlta brand, in addition to action cams.

4. Computing

Sony has a long history in the computer industry, starting with its own PCs in the 1980s like the SMC-777. It re-entered the market with its pioneering VAIO laptops in 1996, focused on audio-visual integration.

However, Sony faced issues like its infamous battery recall in 2006. It tried tapping tablets with Sony Tablet in 2011 and Xperia smartphones from 2012 onwards. But lacklustre sales led Sony to exit the VAIO PC business in 2014, selling the brand to Japan Industrial Partners.

Sony Continues making Raspberry Pi single-board computers at its UK facility. Sony’s expertise in miniaturisation and portability keeps it relevant in the computing domain.

5. Mobiles

In the early 2000s, Sony had a tiny presence in mobile phones with less than 1% market share. To gain a foothold, it partnered with Ericsson in 2001 to format Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications.

The joint venture had a rocky start with losses in 2001-02. However, it turned profitable in 2003 by innovating with multimedia phones featuring cameras. Sony Ericsson rose to become the world’s 4th largest phone maker by 2009.

But intense competition from Apple’s iconic iPhone and the global recession severely impacted the company. Sony acquired Ericsson’s stake for over a billion in 2012 to focus solely on smartphones under its Xperia brand.

While Sony Mobile shipped 40 million handsets at its peak in 2014, sales have declined since. It sold just 2.9 million Xperia phones in fiscal 2020 amid fierce smartphone competition.

6. Robotics

Sony pioneered consumer robotics in the late 1990s with iconic products like the AIBO robotic dog, music bot Rolly, and humanoid QRIO. However, it paused robotics operations for a decade due to financial constraints, before reviving them in 2016.

Sony has forayed into drones too – partnering with Aerosense in 2015 and unveiling its own Airpeak drone integrated with Alpha cameras in 2021. Sony continues exploring cutting-edge robotics and unmanned aerial vehicles.

Game & Network Services

Sony’s PlayStation consoles have been gaming icons since the 1990s. The original PlayStation stemmed from a failed Nintendo partnership but went on to gain a 61% global market share, dethroning Nintendo’s leadership.

The PlayStation 2 became the best-selling console ever at over 150 million units. While the PS3 initially struggled, it eventually overtook Xbox 360 sales through the Blu-ray advantage. Sony innovated with motion controls via PlayStation Move.

Extending to portables, the PSP faced stiff competition from Nintendo’s DS. Sony persisted with Vita and is now a VR pioneer through PlayStation VR for PS4. The recently launched PlayStation 5 matched the PS2’s blistering early sales pace.

Sony’s relentless console evolution from PlayStations 1 to 5 showcases its commitment to pushing gaming boundaries through hardware and software innovations over decades.

Pictures and Music

1. Sony Pictures Entertainment

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is Sony’s global entertainment powerhouse for films and TV shows. It ranked 3rd among movie studios with a 12.5% box office share in 2011, grossing .2 billion in sales in 2010.

SPE has created many iconic franchises like Spider-Man, The Karate Kid, Men in Black, along with hit game shows Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune. It entered Hollywood by acquiring Columbia Pictures for .4 billion in 1989.

Besides Columbia and TriStar, SPE owns other film banners like Screen Gems, Sony Pictures Classics and the home entertainment division. Its television arm Sony Pictures Television produces content worldwide.

Though SPE struggled initially after its formation, it eventually found success. However, a 2014 cyber attack by hackers hit SPE before releasing the comedy The Interview.

Recently in 2024, SPE partnered with Disney to distribute its films on DVD/Blu-ray across North America under a licensing deal through Sony Pictures’ Japanese home entertainment subsidiary.

2. Sony Music Group and SMEJ

Sony Music Entertainment (SME) is the global leader among the “big three” major record labels, owned by Sony Corporation of America. Its journey began with Sony’s massive billion acquisition of CBS Records in 1988, gaining rights to legendary artists like Michael Jackson.

This formed the foundation for establishing SMEs in 1991. Sony had earlier partnered with CBS for a Japan joint venture called CBS/Sony Records in 1968 which became Sony Music Entertainment Japan.

A major milestone was Sony’s 2004 joint venture with Bertelsmann AG to create Sony BMG by merging their music businesses. Though a copy protection rootkit scandal tarnished its image in 2005, Sony bought out Bertelsmann’s stake to re-establish SME in 2008.

SME expanded into music publishing through acquisitions like the iconic catalogues of The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Michael Jackson’s ATV Music. Its 2012 majority stake in EMI Music Publishing made it the world’s largest music publisher.

3. Anime

Sony first entered the anime world back in 1995. Their music division started up Aniplex to manage anime productions. A decade later, they opened their first anime studio, A-1 Pictures.

Sony kept building in this space across different parts of the company and their strategy was making anime a major focus, alongside movies, music, and gaming.

These days, Sony’s anime business is pretty widespread and the pictured unit has anime TV channels like Animax.

A key move was jointly acquiring Crunchyroll with Aniplex in 2017. Crunchyroll is the major anime streaming platform. They recently absorbed some other anime brands too.

In 2021, Sony solidified their anime streaming by fully acquiring Crunchyroll for over a billion dollars. Sony now calls anime its “fourth pillar” of entertainment after movies, music, and gaming.

Electric Vehicles and Batteries

Sony’s been exploring EVs and automotive for a while now. They helped commercialise lithium-ion batteries way back.

In 2014, Sony partnered with NRG Energy on charging stations for EVs. But a couple of years later, they sold off their battery business to Murata. In 2015, they invested in a self-driving car company, ZMP.

Then at CES 2020, Sony unveiled a total surprise – a concept electric car called Vision-S. They said it showcased their goals for sensors, entertainment systems, and autonomous driving tech. It led to its teaming up with Honda to form a new company, Sony Honda Mobility, focused on premium EVs.

They plan to launch Sony Honda’s first electric vehicles by 2026, selling online first in the US and Japan. They just unveiled the brand name “Afeela” at CES 2023.

So from batteries to self-driving to full EVs, Sony is making some intriguing automotive moves. It could be a new avenue for their technology down the road.

Conclusion

Sony has truly transformed from a humble electronics maker. It now reaches into many industries worldwide, from gaming and movies to music and mobile. Sony continues innovating and reinventing itself and its future looks exciting as it explores new frontiers while adapting to changing times seamlessly.