A Look at Sony's Decline
MANAGERIAL ECONOMICS AND DECISIONS OF THE FIRM
Briefing Memo
A Look at Sony's Decline
12/04/2012
Description and Background Setting.
Sony corporation is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. it is ranked 86th in the 2012 list of Fortune Global 500. Over the years, Sony has established the reputation of a leading manufacturer of electronic products in both the professional and consumer markets. But Sony's good name has started to erode.
Recently, Sony's projected net losses for the past financial year were doubled to an expected 520 billion yen or 6.4 billion dollars; the worst loss ever recorded (Tabuchi, par. 2). While there are many contributing factors that can be cited for Sony's current predicament, such as natural disasters or a strong yen which makes Japanese exports more expensive to foreign buyers, one thing is certain; Today's Sony is not the pioneering tech giant it once was.
Before the expected loss announcement made by Sony, the company had been displaying signs of trouble for quite some time. Before the announcement of expected losses, Sony's shares had already fallen 3.5 percent in Tokyo, compared to a benchmark Nikkei fall of only 0.1 percent (Tabuchi, par. 17). If we look back not much further we see that Sony's shares have lost practically half their value in a time period of little more than a year.
If we take a look at recent articles and publicly available information about Sony, we see that their steady decline is due to various factors; a number of which are related to concepts that we have studied in class and that if they are more carefully studied, observed and understood, could mean the difference between another failing strategy and one that could reverse the present course of Sony's disappointing performance. Identification and Statement of the Problem.
In a way, the great tragedy of Sony is being a victim of its own success. It is a company that in its time innovated and made the
Briefing Memo
A Look at Sony's Decline
12/04/2012
Description and Background Setting.
Sony corporation is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. it is ranked 86th in the 2012 list of Fortune Global 500. Over the years, Sony has established the reputation of a leading manufacturer of electronic products in both the professional and consumer markets. But Sony's good name has started to erode.
Recently, Sony's projected net losses for the past financial year were doubled to an expected 520 billion yen or 6.4 billion dollars; the worst loss ever recorded (Tabuchi, par. 2). While there are many contributing factors that can be cited for Sony's current predicament, such as natural disasters or a strong yen which makes Japanese exports more expensive to foreign buyers, one thing is certain; Today's Sony is not the pioneering tech giant it once was.
Before the expected loss announcement made by Sony, the company had been displaying signs of trouble for quite some time. Before the announcement of expected losses, Sony's shares had already fallen 3.5 percent in Tokyo, compared to a benchmark Nikkei fall of only 0.1 percent (Tabuchi, par. 17). If we look back not much further we see that Sony's shares have lost practically half their value in a time period of little more than a year.
If we take a look at recent articles and publicly available information about Sony, we see that their steady decline is due to various factors; a number of which are related to concepts that we have studied in class and that if they are more carefully studied, observed and understood, could mean the difference between another failing strategy and one that could reverse the present course of Sony's disappointing performance. Identification and Statement of the Problem.
In a way, the great tragedy of Sony is being a victim of its own success. It is a company that in its time innovated and made the