Sony is 80-years-old today.
The company – founded on 7th May, 1946 in post-war Japan – was originally named Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo, or Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corp.
It started out without a product or a plan, and immediately set to work making rice cookers, which didn’t have much success.
But it would eventually land its first consumer breakthrough in the 1950s with the TR-55 Transistor Radio, a more personal take on the technology which would no doubt later influence its work on the Walkman.
Sony then introduced the Trinitron television in 1968, which would ensure the company’s dominance in the growing television market. Its aforementioned Walkman, introduced in 1979, became a cultural phenomenon.
From there, the firm explored a number of controversial acquisitions which would help shape the corporation we know today. It acquired both Columbia Pictures and CBS Records to expand into television and music respectively.
And after a failed partnership with Nintendo on a CD-based add-on for the Super Nintendo in the 90s, it secretly created the PlayStation, a product spearheaded by Ken Kutaragi behind closed doors.
These days, Sony is less known for the consumer electronics which defined its early years, although it does still make fantastic cameras and various other pieces of hardware.
In a recent interview, current CEO Hiroki Totoki revealed that more than 60% of the company’s revenue comes from entertainment, with PlayStation being the biggest contributor to that.
The organisation is hoping to diversify further by taking a commanding role in the anime market, which is enjoying a surge in popularity worldwide. Movies like Demon Slayer’s recent Infinity Castle arc have proven massive global hits for the firm.
Despite going through such big changes, it’s testament to Sony’s tenacity that it continues to thrive 80 years after its inception.
From the Trinitron to the Walkman to the PS5 and everything in between, the company’s gone through highs-and-lows, but continues to endure regardless.
It’s going to be really interesting to see what the next 80 years hold for the firm, and what kind of role PlayStation is going to play in it.
