Sony 2008 Annual Report Download - page 25

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Why become a FIFA partner?
Our principal objective is to enhance the brand value of the Sony
Group worldwide. The FIFA partnership encompasses Sony’s core
business categories, including electronics, games, mobile phones,
music and movies. We will make practical use of the partnership
as a common, group-wide platform, rallying the capabilities of Sony
as a whole for maximum impact. Through partnership initiatives,
we are seeking to highlight the unity and collective strengths of the
Sony Group.
Another objective is to further strengthen the Sony brand. To this
end, we are striving to replicate soccer’s stylish, exciting and active
image in our various activities.
What are the merits of the FIFA partnership?
The FIFA World Cup™ is the world’s single biggest sporting event.
The 2006 competition in Germany was broadcast to more than 200
countries and regions and had a cumulative viewing audience of
approximately 30 billion people. As such, the greatest benefi t of this
partnership is that it provides us with essentially exclusive access
to this massive audience for our global advertising, promotional and
marketing activities.
Another important merit is that soccer is an especially popular
and appealing sport among the “digital” generation and residents
of strategically important emerging markets—both of which are
crucial to Sony’s future growth. We are already seeing results, with
a greater affi nity for the Sony brand and an improvement in our brand
image in Central and South America.
The partnership has also given rise to new business opportunities.
We are creating new ways to enjoy soccer by leveraging HD and
other technologies, as well as the entertainment expertise accumu-
lated through involvement in the motion pictures business, among
others. FIFA has high expectations that we will add new value that
is distinctly Sony, while our hope is that the partnership will serve as
Tomoyo Ouchi
FIFA Partnership Project
Offi ce,
Brand Management
Department,
Sony Corporation
A PR and communications
offi cer in the FIFA Partnership
Project Offi ce, Tomoyo Ouchi is
responsible for distributing
information to the public and
promoting information sharing
within the Sony Group.
a catalyst for the development of new businesses. This is why the
term “partner” is used, rather than simply “sponsor.”
Can you tell us a little about the FIFA partnership activities
throughout the Sony Group?
SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT and Sony Music Entertainment
(Japan) Inc.(SMEJ) wrote the theme songs for many competitions,
including the FIFA World Cup™, while in the Electronics business we
are offering comprehensive support by, for example, providing HD
footage and audiovisual equipment. We are also actively developing
promotions for various businesses that make use of HD content.
In Japan, a television program about soccer called S–The Stories–
is being aired that uses archival FIFA footage. A production of Sony
Corporation and Sony Pictures Entertainment, the program also
features music by SMEJ and is sponsored by Sony Marketing
(Japan), thus illustrating the advantages of collaboration among
Sony Group companies in a common branding effort. Also, PS3™
has been chosen as the official platform for “FIFA Interactive
World Cup,” the official FIFA video game.
These and other FIFA partnership efforts refl ect the teamwork
and cooperation inherent in the concept of “Sony United.” Going
forward, we will continue to take on the challenge of capitalizing on
the attractive opportunity provided by FIFA and soccer in a way
that only Sony can.
23
image sensors to accommodate expanding
applications.
We have allocated approximately ¥60
billion over three years—fi scal years 2007,
2008 and 2009—to invest in expanding the
image sensor fabrication capacity of Sony
Semiconductor Kyushu Corporation’s
Kumamoto Technology Center. Over the next
three years, while maintaining an industry-
leading position in charge-coupled device
(CCD) image sensors, we will work to con-
tinue to strengthen our CMOS image sensor
manufacturing with the aim of developing
sensors that combine superb image quality
with advanced processing speeds, for use
in growth-market products, such as camera-
equipped mobile phones.
In our semiconductor business, we plan to
continue to invest actively in the develop-
ment and production of image sensors,
An in-stadium promotional activity (Commercial display)
08SonyE_P14_27_0802.indd 2308SonyE_P14_27_0802.indd 23 08.8.7 2:18:50 PM08.8.7 2:18:50 PM