Two years after taking over the helm of Sony Corp., Chief Executive Howard Stringer is quietly preparing a big move to expand the company and challenge rival Apple Inc. in an area that has thus far promised more than it has delivered: video-downloading services.
在出任索尼公司(Sony Corp.又名:新力公司)首席子执行长两年后,霍华德.斯金格(Howard Stringer)正在暗中酝酿一次重大行动,以扩展公司业务,在很具增长前景的视频下载领域挑战竞争对手苹果公司(Apple Inc.)
People familiar with the situation say Mr. Stringer is planning to use Sony's technology-packed PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable videogame machines, along with its Bravia high-definition television sets, to develop products and services to let users download television shows and movies, similar to the way they download music using Apple's iTunes store and iPods. A Sony spokesman declined to comment on the company's strategy.
据知情人士称,斯金格计划将采用索尼技术的PlayStation 3(PS3)和PlayStation Portable(PSP)游戏机与该公司Bravia高清电视机相结合,开发能让用户下载电视节目和电影的产品及服务,其模式同苹果iTunes Store和iPod的音乐下载服务类似.索尼发言人对该公司的策略不予置评.
As Internet connections have become faster, analysts have expected the next big potential market to be in downloading movies and television shows. Some analysts believe it could be significantly larger than the digital music market. Park Associates, a market-research and consulting firm, estimates that annual revenue from Internet video, including ad-based and user-paid services, could exceed $7 billion in the U.S. alone by 2010.
随着互联网的网速越来越快,分析师预计下一个潜在的巨大市场将是电影和电视节目下载.一些分析师认为,这一市场的规模可能会大大超过数字音乐市场.市场研究及咨询机构Park Associates估计,到2010年,美国基于广告和用户付费这两种服务方式的互联网视频业务将获得超过70亿美元的收入.
Apple offers video-compatible iPod devices and the iPhone, along with downloadable television shows, music videos and movies for purchase on its iTunes Store. But analysts say there is no clear winner yet and the market is up for grabs.
苹果公司提供兼容视频的iPod播放器和iPhone手机,用户可在其iTunes Store付费下载电视节目、音乐视频和电影.但分析师表示,这块业务目前还没有明显的赢家,各方都在尽力抢占市场.
'The real key is going to be who is providing the best high-definition experience for viewers,' says Kurt Scherf, a Park Associates analyst who studied this market. He adds that companies ranging from electronics makers to cable companies and content providers are all experimenting in search of the best strategy.
Park Associates研究该市场的分析师科特.舍夫(Kurt Scherf)表示,为观众提供最高清晰度节目乃该市场的制胜之道.从电子设备制造商到有线电视运营商,再到内容提供商等各领域的公司都在尝试寻找最佳战略.
Establishing a dominant position in this area is crucial for Sony, whose Walkman music devices lost out to Apple's iPods when Sony failed to launch compelling music-downloading software. The move also could help boost lagging sales of the PS3 and PSP videogame devices. The PS3, in particular, has been a big disappointment even though Sony made a large investment in its development to build a state-of-the-art machine.
对索尼而言,在此领域占据主导地位至关重要,由于该公司未能推出重量级的音乐下载软件,其“Walkmans”随身听已经被苹果公司的IPods甩在身后.此举还有助于推动滞销的PS3和PSP游戏机.尤其是PS3,索尼公司斥巨资想打造出一款卓越不凡的机型,结果却令人大失所望.
Sony, which has spent the last few years restructuring, has already been moving in this direction. Last week, the company unveiled a new Walkman for the U.S. market that for the first time can play movie trailers and music videos in addition to music. In a sign that Sony might have given up at least for now on trying to beat Apple in music, it also said that it was phasing out its music download service called Connect and that the latest Walkmans would use Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Media software.
过去几年一直在进行大力管理重组的索尼公司已经在朝这个方向努力.上周索尼在美国推出一款新的随身听,除播放音乐外,它还首次具备了播放短片和音乐视频的功能.作为索尼可能已至少暂时放弃与苹果公司争夺音乐市场的迹象,该公司宣布正着手停止其名为“Connect”的音乐下载服务,而新推出的这款随身听将采用微软公司(Microsoft Corp.)的Windows Media播放器.
This year, Sony introduced a module for its U.S. television models that can download Internet content. It will roll out a similar device in Japan this fall that will let consumers download videos from a number of Internet services. Meanwhile, Sony's PlayStation unit last month launched new features for the PS3 and PSP in Europe that let consumers use their game machines to record television shows onto their PS3s and transfer them onto their PSPs.
今年索尼为它提供美国市场的电视机配备了一款可下载互联网内容的模块,并拟于今秋在日本推出类似的设备,消费者可以用此种设备在多个互联网服务项目中下载视频.索尼的PlayStation业务部门上月在欧洲为PS3和PSP注入了新功能,消费者可以用PS3录制电视节目并输入到PSP中.
But Sony faces huge challenges in this market. For a start, it will be competing with some of the most powerful names in global business. In addition to Apple, Microsoft has also been positioning its competing Xbox 360 device to be used for video-downloading. Internet companies, as well as television and movie studios, cable companies and mobile operators, are jockeying for a piece of the action.
不过索尼在此市场面临的挑战是严峻的.在起步的初期就要与全不少地方最具实力的一些公司展开竞争.除苹果公司外,短短几天 软也准备以视频下载作为Xbox 360游戏机的竞争点.而其他互联网公司、电视和电影公司、有线电视运营商和手机运营商都想在这个市场中分一杯羹.
Apple's set-top device called Apple TV, which lets users play music video from their PC-based iTunes library, hasn't been selling strongly since it went on sale earlier this year, analysts say. Since introducing video on iTunes in October 2005, Apple saw a big increase in video downloads for the first year, but analysts say the number has tapered off recently. In response, an Apple spokeswoman said, 'We're the No. 1 video download store.'
苹果命名为“Apple TV”的置顶盒可以让用户通过安装在电脑中的iTunes播放器播放文件库中的音乐视频.但分析师称,该产品自今年早些时候面市以来未引起热烈反响.分析师称,苹果公司自2005年10月为iTunes引入视频功能以来,只在头一年出现过视频下载量的大幅增长,这一增长势头近来已开始降温.苹果公司的某发言人对此回应说,"我们现在是视频下载服务方面的老大".
Still, industry observers say Sony has one possible advantage in its quest to become a major player in the video downloading market: Content companies like movie studios may be wary of the way Apple dominated the digital music market, and may be more encouraged to work with another company, especially one that owns a movie studio of its own and understands their concerns. Last week, a dispute erupted into public view between Apple and one of its biggest suppliers of television shows, General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal, over pricing of television episodes and other issues. As a result, Apple has vowed not to sell NBC programs from the coming fall season.
不过行业观察人士认为,索尼在成为视频下载市场重要成员方面仍可能拥有一项优势.那就是苹果公司主导数码音乐市场的方式可能会让电影公司之类的内容提供商产生警觉,进而促使他们投往其他公司门下,特别是像索尼这样自己本身就拥有电影公司并了解内容提供商想法的公司.上周苹果公司与其最大的内容提供商之一--通用电气公司(General Electric Co.)旗下的NBC Universal因电视剧价格和其他问题引发的争吵被曝光.其结果是苹果公司放话称,从下一季开始将封杀NBC Universal的节目.
'We've been saying for years that if there's a company that can marry all this emerging content to products that people want, it's Sony that's going to make it happen,' says Parks Associates analyst Mr. Scherf.
Parks Associates的分析师舍夫称,人们多年来一直认为,如果有哪家公司能在客户喜爱的产品中整合进所有这些新兴的内容,那只能是索尼公司.
The foray into video downloading will be a crucial test for Mr. Stringer, who has succeeded in slashing costs at Sony but must now prove he can also find new areas of growth. Since the failure of the Walkman to beat the iPod, Sony has been struggling to come up with a new product that defines the industry standard in innovation.
进军视频下载市场是对斯金格的一场重要考验,虽然成功压缩了索尼的成本,但现在必须证明他能为公司找到新的业务增长点.自从索尼随身听在与苹果公司的ipod的较量中落败后,索尼一直努力要推出一种能在业内起到创新标杆作用的新产品.
It is also a test of whether Mr. Stringer has succeeded in taming Sony's fiercely independent corporate culture. In the past, the company has struggled to get its various units to cooperate. An area like video downloading would require extremely close teamwork among the electronics, movie and videogame units.
同时这也将考验斯金格能否驾驭索尼唯我独尊的企业文化.各部门相互协作困难过去一直是令索尼头疼的问题.而视频下载业务则需要电子、电影和电视游戏等各部之间进行密切的团队协作.
Mr. Stringer has recently appointed executives with a track record of cooperation. One is Kazuo Hirai, the new head of the PlayStation group, who in June succeeded Ken Kutaragi, the creator of the PlayStation. Mr. Stringer also expanded the role of an electronics executive, Katsumi Ihara, who Sony executives say understands the importance of integrating compelling software with good hardware.
斯金格最近任命了几名素以善于协作闻名的管理人员.其中包括今年6月接替PS之父久多良木健(Ken Kutaragi)的索尼计算机娱乐公司(Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.)新任掌门人平井一夫(Kazuo Hirai).斯金格还让分管电子类产品的进原腾美(Katsumi Ihara)发挥更大作用.据索尼管理人士称,井原腾美是一位理解硬件好马需要配上软件好鞍才行的人.
People familiar with the situation say Mr. Stringer has been laying the groundwork in recent months to shift the company's focus to video downloading. For example, they say he decided to end Sony's unsuccessful efforts to challenge Apple in the music-downloading business in order to focus on the new strategy. In May, Mr. Stringer quietly decided to shut down the unit that was charged with creating a portable music player and online music service. Sony said last Thursday that the service would be phased out and the latest Walkmans would use Microsoft's Windows Media software.
知情人士透露,斯金格近几个月已在为公司业务重心向视频下载转移作准备.例如他表示,为了专注于新战略,已决定放弃对苹果公司在音乐下载业务上不成功的挑战.今年5月,斯金格悄悄决定撤销某个负责开发一种便携式音乐播放器和网上音乐服务的部门.上周上该公司表示,将停止这项音乐服务,其最新型的随身听将采用Windows Media播放器.
The people privy to Sony's plans also say Mr. Stringer, over the protests of some executives, personally enforced a decision to adopt a certain digital-rights management software that will eventually be used in Sony's products. That is an indication of how serious he is about making sure the company's various units come together to make this strategy a success, they say.
与索尼计划有关的人士透露,斯金格在某些高管反对的情况下,个人推动实施了一项决定--采用某种最终将应用在索尼产品上的数字版权管理软件.该人士表示,从这件事可以看出,斯金格对于确保索尼各部门能协同配合以成功贯彻上述经营战略是何等认真.
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