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  • Tokyo, Japan
    Tuesday May 7, 1946

    Founding

    Tokyo, Japan
    Tuesday May 7, 1946

    Sony began in the wake of World War II. In 1946, Masaru Ibuka started an electronics shop in a department store building in Tokyo. The company started with a capital of ¥190,000 and a total of eight employees.




  • Tokyo, Japan
    Tuesday May 7, 1946

    Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo

    Tokyo, Japan
    Tuesday May 7, 1946

    On 7 May 1946, Ibuka was joined by Akio Morita to establish a company called Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo (Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corporation).The company built Japan's first tape recorder, called the Type-G. In 1958, the company changed its name to "Sony".




  • Tokyo, Japan
    Jan, 1958

    Changing The Name To Sony

    Tokyo, Japan
    Jan, 1958

    The name "Sony" was chosen for the brand as a mix of two words: one was the Latin word "sonus", which is the root of sonic and sound, and the other was "sonny", a common slang term used in 1950s America to call a young boy. 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.




  • 25 Madison Avenue, New York City, New York, U.S.
    Monday Feb 15, 1960

    Founding SCA

    25 Madison Avenue, New York City, New York, U.S.
    Monday Feb 15, 1960

    Sony co-founder Akio Morita founded Sony Corporation of America in 1960.




  • Tokyo, Japan
    Apr, 1968

    Introduced The Trinitron brand

    Tokyo, Japan
    Apr, 1968

    In 1968, Sony introduced the Trinitron brand name for its lines of aperture grille cathode ray tube televisions and (later) 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 US in early 2007. The end of Trinitron marked the end of Sony's analog television sets and monitors.




  • Tokyo, Japan
    Saturday May 10, 1975

    Launching the Betamax

    Tokyo, Japan
    Saturday May 10, 1975

    The company launched the Betamax videocassette recording format in 1975. 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. In the end, VHS gained critical mass in the marketbase and became the worldwide standard for consumer VCRs.




  • Tokyo, Japan
    Sunday Jul 1, 1979

    The Walkman Brand

    Tokyo, Japan
    Sunday Jul 1, 1979

    In 1979, the Walkman brand was introduced, in the form of the world's first portable music player using the compact cassette format.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    Aug, 1979

    Sony Life

    Tokyo, Japan
    Aug, 1979

    Sony began a life insurance company in 1979, one of its many peripheral businesses.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    Friday Oct 1, 1982

    Releasing CD

    Tokyo, Japan
    Friday Oct 1, 1982

    In 1983, Sony followed their counterpart Philips to the compact disc (CD). In addition to developing consumer-based recording media, after the launch of the CD Sony began development of commercially based recording media.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    Nov, 1984

    Launching The Discman Series

    Tokyo, Japan
    Nov, 1984

    In 1984, Sony launched the Discman series which extended their Walkman brand to portable CD products.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    Sep, 1992

    Introducing The MiniDisc Format

    Tokyo, Japan
    Sep, 1992

    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.


  • U.S.
    Thursday Jun 17, 1993

    SDDS Format

    U.S.
    Thursday Jun 17, 1993

    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 SDDS (Sony Dynamic Digital Sound). This format employed eight channels (7.1) of audio opposed to just six used in Dolby Digital 5.1 at the time.


  • Japan
    Saturday Dec 3, 1994

    Launch The 1st PlayStation

    Japan
    Saturday Dec 3, 1994

    Launched in 1994, the first PlayStation gained 61% of global console sales and broke Nintendo's long-standing lead in the market.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    1996

    Announcing The first Cyber-shot camera

    Tokyo, Japan
    1996

    The first Cyber-shot was introduced in 1996. At the time, digital cameras were a relative novelty.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    1996

    Sony Entered again Into The Global Computer Market

    Tokyo, Japan
    1996

    Sony produced computers 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.


  • New York, U.S.
    1995

    Fortune Global 500 List of 1995

    New York, U.S.
    1995

    Sony was ranked 43 on the 1995 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    1996

    Fortune Global 500 List of 1996

    New York, U.S.
    1996

    Sony was ranked 40 on the 1996 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    1997

    Fortune Global 500 List of 1997

    New York, U.S.
    1997

    Sony was ranked 33 on the 1997 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    Oct, 1998

    Launching Their Memory Stick

    Tokyo, Japan
    Oct, 1998

    Sony launched in 1998, their Memory Stick format, 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 cards (SD) commanding considerably greater popularity.


  • New York, U.S.
    1998

    Fortune Global 500 List of 1998

    New York, U.S.
    1998

    Sony was ranked 30 on the 1998 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    1999

    Fortune Global 500 List of 1999

    New York, U.S.
    1999

    Sony was ranked 31 on the 1999 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • Japan
    Saturday Mar 4, 2000

    Releasing PlayStation 2

    Japan
    Saturday Mar 4, 2000

    Sony released the PlayStation 2 in 2000, which was even more successful than the first one . The console has become the most successful of all time, selling over 150 million units as of 2011.


  • New York, U.S.
    2000

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2000

    New York, U.S.
    2000

    Sony was ranked 30 on the 2000 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2001

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2001

    New York, U.S.
    2001

    Sony was ranked 30 on the 2001 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2002

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2002

    New York, U.S.
    2002

    Sony was ranked 37 on the 2002 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2003

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2003

    New York, U.S.
    2003

    Sony was ranked 32 on the 2003 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • Japan
    Sunday Dec 12, 2004

    Releasing The PlayStation Portable (PSP)

    Japan
    Sunday Dec 12, 2004

    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.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    2005

    Introducing The BRAVIA Name

    Tokyo, Japan
    2005

    The company then introduced the 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. Sony is the third-largest maker of televisions in the world. As of 2012, Sony's television business has been unprofitable for eight years.


  • New York, U.S.
    2004

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2004

    New York, U.S.
    2004

    Sony was ranked 30 on the 2004 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • Japan
    2006

    The Largest Computer-related Recall To That Point In History

    Japan
    2006

    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.


  • New York, U.S.
    2005

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2005

    New York, U.S.
    2005

    Sony was ranked 47 on the 2005 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    Tuesday Jun 20, 2006

    The Blu-ray Optical disc Format

    Tokyo, Japan
    Tuesday Jun 20, 2006

    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.


  • Japan
    Saturday Nov 11, 2006

    Releasing PlayStation 3

    Japan
    Saturday Nov 11, 2006

    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 competitors Xbox 360 and Wii due to a Cell processor.


  • New York, U.S.
    2006

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2006

    New York, U.S.
    2006

    Sony was ranked 65 on the 2006 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2007

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2007

    New York, U.S.
    2007

    Sony was ranked 69 on the 2007 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2008

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2008

    New York, U.S.
    2008

    Sony was ranked 75 on the 2008 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2009

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2009

    New York, U.S.
    2009

    Sony was ranked 81 on the 2009 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2010

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2010

    New York, U.S.
    2010

    Sony was ranked 69 on the 2010 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • U.S.
    Friday Sep 16, 2011

    Launching Sony Tablet line

    U.S.
    Friday Sep 16, 2011

    In a bid to join the tablet computer market, the company launched its Sony Tablet line of Android tablets in 2011. But since 2012, Sony's Android products have been marketed under the Xperia brand used for its smartphones.


  • New York, U.S.
    2011

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2011

    New York, U.S.
    2011

    Sony was ranked 73 on the 2011 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2012

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2012

    New York, U.S.
    2012

    Sony was ranked 87 on the 2012 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • Japan
    Tuesday Apr 16, 2013

    The Sony Olympus Medical Solutions Inc.

    Japan
    Tuesday Apr 16, 2013

    Olympus and Sony established Sony Olympus Medical Solutions Inc. (Sony 51%, Olympus 49%) on 16 April 2013, which is a joint venture to develop new surgical endoscopes with 4K resolution (or higher) and 3D capability.


  • Japan
    Friday Nov 15, 2013

    Releasing PlayStation 4

    Japan
    Friday Nov 15, 2013

    Sony launched its fourth console, the PlayStation 4, on 15 November 2013, which as of 31 December 2017 has sold 73.6 million units globally.


  • New York, U.S.
    2013

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2013

    New York, U.S.
    2013

    Sony was ranked 94 on the 2013 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    Tuesday Feb 4, 2014

    Sony announced Selling VAIO PC business

    Tokyo, Japan
    Tuesday Feb 4, 2014

    On 4 February 2014, Sony announced that it would sell its VAIO PC business due to poor sales and Japanese company Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) will purchase the VAIO brand, with the deal finalized by the end of March 2014. Sony maintains a minority stake in the new, independent company.


  • Japan
    Friday Feb 28, 2014

    P5, Inc.

    Japan
    Friday Feb 28, 2014

    On 28 February 2014, Sony, M3 and Illumina established a joint venture called P5, Inc. to provide a genome analysis service for research institutions and enterprises in Japan.


  • San Francisco, California, U.S.
    Tuesday Mar 18, 2014

    The PlayStation VR announcement

    San Francisco, California, U.S.
    Tuesday Mar 18, 2014

    On 18 March 2014, at GDC, president of Sony Computer Entertainment 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 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. PlayStation VR was released worldwide on 13 October 2016.


  • New York, U.S.
    2014

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2014

    New York, U.S.
    2014

    Sony was ranked 105 on the 2013 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • Tokyo, Japan
    Monday Nov 9, 2015

    Sony's announcement about The Betamax

    Tokyo, Japan
    Monday Nov 9, 2015

    On 9 November 2015, Sony announced that they are going to stop producing Betamax Tapes in March 2016.


  • New York, U.S.
    2015

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2015

    New York, U.S.
    2015

    Sony was ranked 116 on the 2015 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2016

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2016

    New York, U.S.
    2016

    Sony was ranked 113 on the 2016 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2017

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2017

    New York, U.S.
    2017

    Sony was ranked 105 on the 2017 Fortune Global 500 list.


  • New York, U.S.
    2018

    Fortune Global 500 List of 2018

    New York, U.S.
    2018

    Sony was ranked 97 on the 2018 Fortune Global 500 list.


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