The Emancipation of Sony

Sony really did drop the ball. And you can see it on the face of every Japanese person who ogles an iBook. Pride can be a terrible thing, and we all as individuals and groups or companies need to remember this.

Went to the Westchester Mall in White Plains, New York, a few months ago: Apple's store was jammin' with at least 40 people in there, with a constant turnover. Down the hall on the lower level, Sony's little shop of horrors had one middle-aged Oriental couple with the store all to themselves, quietly fingering a Vaio and looking like the Last of the Mohicans. Totally true story.

Sony makes better headphones than Apple, that I can say, and they certainly have some good tech, but what the heck are they gonna' do come this Christmas when Apple releases its own killer video game solution? (You think they ain't workin' on it? Does EA Sports mean anything to you? And I don't mean game console in the traditional sense, but as an extension of the capabilities of the existing Mac line and the under-utilized .Mac server. The Mac does do games now, but not in a big way.)

BASF, Sun Micro, and the likes - Sony should join them as the tech behind the tech, because they are no longer a brand name. Samsung already back-doored them and took away their potential lead in things like TV's and cellphones, so they shouldn't whine too much about Apple, because they got beat long before their resurgence - in their own Asian back yard. Apple can be a convenient scapegoat for them, but they need to face the truth, drop the competitive attitude, and do some good stuff - just plain good stuff, as in both the quality and socially-conscious sense.

Anyone who signs Michael Jackson and slaps on the DRM tighter than Lara Croft's tank top deserves to be sitting on the sidelines watching the second half with Microsoft. You haven't forgotten their DRM horror show already, have you? Focus, now, focus...

And were they high on green tea or something when they brought in former CBS president Howard Stringer? Or are they drinking from the "Bushy Bowl" - to borrow a phrase from Ali G? Bringing in a freaking network television 30-plus year exec from the CBS Eye? Man, it doesn't take a crystal ball to figure out why Sony slid downhill: look at where network TV mentality has digressed. I can't even help wonder if the whole thing was U.S. gov-corp sabotage!

Come on Sony, we loved your Walkman! But you slapped us in the face with your Ivory Towerism and sneaky copy-protection plan, while wasting your time trying to diversify with the acquisition of Warner Records and now BMG. Haven't you woken up yet and smelled the rat in your coffee? Egoistic pride dies hard, buy you are dying with it, dear Sony.