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3rd Assignment of Brand Management on Sony Walkman

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Submitted to: Submitted by :

Dr. Bharat Ahuja Vikrant Kumar

MBA Int. Expo.

Reg. no. 10900372

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Introduction of Product:
Walkman was a product by Sony Brand; Sony started manufacturing of walkman in 1979. Early Walkman
was used to play music audio cassettes. Sony sold approx 220 million units from 1979 to 2010. Now recently
Sony stop manufacturing of Walkman Cassette players.

Image of a oldest walkman

As we know that Sony is a japnies brand, 1st walkman was designed by the Nobutoshi kihara for Sony. Now
Sony launched it first walkman in 1979 in japnies market, then USA, Norway and UK.

Sony continues to use the "Walkman" brand name for most of their portable audio devices, after the
"Discman" name for CD players was dropped in the late 1990s. According to Sony, the plural form is
"Walkman Personal Stereos", rather than "Walkmans" or "Walkmen"

In March 2007, Sony extended the brand by launching its first all-digital, flash-based video Walkman,
the A800 series, where A stands for "All in one, Advanced, and Attractive”.

In 1998 Sony launched a new model of walkman which , Sony upped the ante once again by creating the
playback-only WM-DD9, launched in 1989 during the 10th anniversary of the Walkman (five years after the
WM-D6C) and became the holy grail for a niche group of cassette Walkman collectors. It is the only auto-
reverse Walkman in history to use a two-motor, quartz-locked, disc drive system similar to high-end home
cassette decks to ensure accurate tape speed for both sides of playback (only one motor operates at a time
depending on the side of the tape being played).

Power consumption was improved by requiring only either one AA battery or one gumstick-type
rechargeable, with optional AC adaptor input. It is also equipped with a tight gap amorphous tape head
capable of reproducing the full 20–20,000 Hz frequency range, a gold plated headphone jack, and a 2 mm
thick aluminum body. Sony made this model with only sound quality in mind, therefore it contains no gimmick
features such as in-line remote control, music search, or LCD readout. Its only features are Dolby B/C noise
reduction decoding, Mega Bass/DBB bass boost, tape type select, and two auto reverse modes.

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Walkman WM-FX421 (1998)

By the late 1990s, the cassette-based Walkman was generally passed over in favor of the emerging digital
technologies of CD, DAT and MiniDisc. After 2000, cassette-based Walkman products (and their clones)
were approaching technological obsolescence as the cassette format was gradually phased out. Sony still
continues to make cassette-based Walkman devices in China for the US and other overseas markets,
however they were discontinued in Japan only on October 23, 2010

CD Walkman (Discman)
The first CD based Walkman was initially launched in 1984 — the D-50 (D-5 in some markets). It was
officially called the 'Discman', and this name has since been used informally to refer to such players. In recent
years, Sony has dropped the Discman name and markets all its personal stereos under the Walkman brand.

Video Walkman
The Sony GV-8 Video Walkman was introduced in 1989.

MiniDisc Walkman

The MiniDisc was comparable to a miniaturized CD, capable of storing up to

74 minutes of near CD-quality audio on a disc roughly two-thirds the size of a CD. Today MiniDiscs can hold
data files as well as music, with the ability to record and reproduce audio in CD-quality.

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After these Sony launches lot of other NW (Network walkman) series, then they release different version of
NW series which were very success.

At last for music only sony launched w series of walkman which is ;

Walkman W series

The Sony Walkman W series is a wireless MP3 player built into a set of water-resistant headphones with 2 GB of internal memory. It can
play 11 hours of music and can "quick-charge" for three minutes to yield up to 90 minutes of playback. It can play back MP3, AAC
(unprotected only), and WMA (subscription included) files. It features Zappin, which allows the user to browse through tracks by playing a
snippet of the chorus of each song.

Walkman Video MP3 Player

Walkman Video MP3 Player combined the music playback capability of current Walkman MP3 Player line with video. Sony decided to
choose Memory Stick Video format (which actually is H.264/MPEG-4 AVC format) as standard for Walkman MP3 Video Player.

Walkman X series

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The Sony Walkman X series is a touchscreen audio and video player from Sony. It has a 3-inch (76 mm) OLED touch screen, internet
access through Wi-Fi and digital noise-cancelling as well as applications for Slacker and YouTube. It is available in 16 GB and 32 GB
versions.

Walkman phones from Sony Ericsson

After losing a large portion of the market to other companies, Sony's latest attempt to revive the Walkman brand involves a series of
music-centred mobile phones marketed under the Sony Ericsson brand.

. It also includes standard mobile phone features, such as a 2 megapixel auto-focus camera. The W550/W600 will have 256 MB of internal
memory, while the W800 includes a 512 MB Memory Stick.

Broadband Network Era

Sony is a corporation with convergence at its very heart. Driven by an integrated business model, the
company is well positioned to bring new benefits to consumers by combining hardware, software, content and
services.

Sony’s approach is to make it possible for consumers to enjoy various forms of content on both "home
networks," consisting of connected electronic devices, and "mobile networks" that are accessible through
mobile terminals.

Products such as the i.LINK® interface and Memory Stick® digital storage media provide greater connectivity
between digital devices and will help create seamless home and personal networks.

Promoting a World Class Brand

The phenomenal strength of the Sony brand worldwide is surely a testament to the company’s reputation for
producing innovative products of exceptional quality and value. And while traditional brand theory says brand
essence should be narrowed down to one element, Sony celebrates brand diversity -- with the Trinitron, VAIO
and Walkman sub-brands, to name just a few, each connecting with consumers across various lifestyle
segments.

Sony has the brand recognition and marketing savvy to create new product categories and revitalize mature
ones. Look no further than what the company did with the Walkman brand and for the MiniDisc format.

Sony, the company that changed the way the world listens to music with the introduction of the Walkman
personal stereo, again set its sights on transforming the portable music landscape when it kicked off a
comprehensive, integrated marketing campaign to relaunch the Walkman brand in June 2000.

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Titled "The Walkman Has Landed," the marketing campaign, which included broadcast, print and online
advertising; Internet and dealer events/promotions; and grassroots consumer and public relations
components; strategically communicated the lifestyle attributes of the Sony Walkman line to generation Y, its
primary target market.

Additionally, the campaign brought together an entirely new product line up comprised of CD Walkman, MD
Walkman and Network Walkman personal digital audio players.

The company knew that it needed to reinvent the Walkman brand for today’s younger, more digitally inclined
music lovers. (To many, the brand had become generic, representing "older," analog-based cassette
technology.) Sony promoted a new Walkman ideology based on personal freedom, independence,
imagination and creativity in a way that appealed to new techno-savvy, style-conscious consumers who favor
digital downloading and ripping CDs.

The star of the television commercial from the campaign is an alien character named Plato, who is
"quintessentially diverse and knows how to have fun." His persona offers Gen Y a bit of humor and a good
dose of enjoyment.

Brand Values

Sony is one of the world’s greatest brands -- the company was once again rated the number one brand in the
U.S. by the 2000 Harris poll. As noted, much of the brand equity Sony enjoys is rooted in product innovations.

However, to ensure the future of its brand, the company recently embarked on an extensive, company-wide
initiative in the U.S. designed to foster a common understanding of the Sony brand among employees,
customers and consumers. The project, dubbed Being Sony, was necessitated because of expansive
company growth, an influx of new employees, and converging business opportunities.

Sony executives felt the need to clearly articulate the meaning and values inherent in the Sony brand (to both
internal and external constituencies), while re-examining the unique relationship of the brand in American
culture.

Despite involvement in disparate businesses, the company’s desire is to leverage the brand beyond the
products -- the primary touchpoint with consumers, and add to the brand’s value by re-focusing it to the
outside world.
We Help Dreamers Dream

Sony is a company devoted to the CELEBRATION of life. We create things for every kind of IMAGINATION.
Products that stimulate the SENSES and refresh the spirit. Ideas that always surprise and never disappoint.
INNOVATIONS that are easy to love, and EFFORTLESS to use, things that are not essential, yet hard to live
without.

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We are not here to be logical. Or predictable. We’re here to pursue INFINITE possibilities. We allow the
BRIGHTEST minds to interact freely, so the UNEXPECTED can emerge. We invite new THINKING so even
more fantastic ideas can evolve. CREATIVITY is our essence. We take chances. We EXCEED expectations.
We help dreamers DREAM

Sony Walkman officially dies at age 31

anniversary at the Sony Archive building in Tokyo, Japan.

The Walkman, the Sony cassette device that forever changed music listening before becoming outdated by
digital MP3 players and iPods, has died. It was 31 years old.
Sony announced Monday that it has ceased production of the classic, cassette tape Walkman in Japan,
effectively sounding the death knell of the once iconic, now obsolete device.
The Walkman is survived by the Discman (still clinging to life) and ironic music listeners who think using a
Walkman in this day-and-age is charmingly out-of-touch.
It will continue to be produced in China and distributed in the U.S., Europe and some Asian countries.
Digital Walkmans are also being made with models that display lyrics and have improved digital noise-
canceling technology.
It revolutionized the way music could be consumed, ushering in the new era of portable pop, but the SONY
cassette Walkman is finally calling it a day after 30 years in the market.

SONY has discontinued the gadget after shipping out its last shipment of five models. Once these
shipments have been bought out, new cassette Walkmans won’t be available from SONY.

The Walkman arrived in Japan in 1979 and proved a massive success, selling some 220 million units in total.
It pushed music to the masses, letting people enjoy their music privately outside of their homes, and was the

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prototype for its digital cousin, the iPod, which coincidentally celebrated its ninth birthday two days ago.

The Walkman is dead, long live the Walkman indeed.

Time to retire those tapes. Sony has said that it's stopping production of the Walkman, due to lackluster sales
of the outdated music player.
According to the company, the last round of the portable cassette player was produced in Japan in April, and
once that batch sells out, the Walkman is history.

Before the Walkman, record players were the de facto choice for music players. But the Walkman was
supplanted by portable CD players, which were replaced by MP3 players. Coincidentally, Sunday is also the
iPod's ninth birthday, another iconic music player.
Sony still uses the Walkman name for other devices.

Advertisement

Sony's marketing team produced their first advertisement, a print ad, in 1979 named Bridging the difference.
The marketing of the Walkman introduced the idea of 'Japanese-ness' into global culture, synonymous with
miniaturization and high-technology. While it was also launched as Walkman in Asia, the Middle East and
Latin America. It was launched as ‘Freestyle’ in Sweden, since the Sony staff in Sweden objected to the illicit
connotations of the word ‘stowaway. The use of these different names meant that the same product had to be
promoted with different logos and package designs. Before the release of the Walkman, Sony distributed 100
cassette-players to influential individuals like magazine editors and musicians.

In advertisements were created to be the ideal reflections of the subject watching. This suppositional link that
the consumer can have with the product allows one to identify with the personalized device, which then can
become an integrated part of his or her life. The advertising of the Sony Walkman served to portray it as a
culturally "hip" item. The advertisements contained youthful and fit people using the Walkman in order to
entice people into purchasing it. The people in the commercials embodied the "identities we can
become", thus making the Walkman a more appealing product for consumers. Teenagers were targeted by
the advertising in particular, as Sony’s executives hoped that by marketing their product to teens, the
Walkman brand would become associated with “youth, activity, sport, leisure, the outdoors, fitness, health,
movement, [and] getting-out-and-about”

The word "walk-man" itself provides consumers with a vision of the product. In addition to these other modes
of advertising, the walkman can be marketed through its idea of being a definition of today's culture. "It
belongs to our culture because we have constructed for it a little world of meaning; and this bringing of the
object into meaning is what constitutes it as a cultural artefact."

Today, Walkman still maintains its role in our culture, albeit a diminished one due to the large number of
competitors in mobile audio devices today.

RECOVERY OF BRAND:

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Now Sony stop manufacturing of walkman cassette player but they use their well establish brand walkman in
their phone and new technologies based MP3 players. This is a most valuable brand for sony and they use it
very well. As the technology changed and demand of music players, they gives it to the market.

We can say that Sony is not completely turned off with walkman brand, they used it in their mobile phone also
and it a big hit in the market. In competition of walkman Motorola is on the 1st. Motorola comes it new variant
with capability of MP3 player and Bluetooth connectivity with the phones. Beside of this nothing I is in the
competition of walkman. For Sony walkman is a big hit and it contribute high equity in sony brand.

Conclusion:

As the conclusion , we can recommend that there is no need for sony to come back with the walkman
cassette player in market, because they modify it with their new product and they get benefit of that by using
their establish brand. Now sony having a demand in market for the walkman music players with their different
products.

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