Sony May Post Smaller Loss For FY08

Sony has yet to alter its provisions in its forecast to reflect a new tax law revision, which may point to a smaller loss for FY08. The change is definitely in Sony’s favor, which predicted a 150 billion yen/$1.5 billion net loss. The new law change allows dividends paid by foreign units of Japanese businesses to be exempt from taxation. Bloomberg reports, “Companies in Japan typically include provisions for these taxes in their annual results. It’s unclear how much of the 90 billion yen in provisions Sony set aside last fiscal year can be added back to its books.

Sony HDR-TG5V as Promised

We mentioned just a week or so ago that a new HD pocket friendly camcorder is about to be released and Sony followed up with an official press release of Sony HDR-TG5V. The design of this newly announced camcorder has not changed much since we saw HDR-TG1 but the internals got a few extra kicks like 16GB of flash memory (holds more than six hours of high definition video footage (LP mode) ), embedded GPS, minimal buttons and a new intuitive user interface for the touch-panel LCD.

The camcorder’s built-in GPS antenna and NAVTEQ® digital maps geo-tag your videos and photos so you can document your destinations on a map. Geo-tagged content is marked by a push pin at each shot location and can be played back on the camcorder map index display on the 2.7-inch (measured diagonally) wide LCD touch panel. You can also enjoy this feature on the PC using the included Picture Motion Browser software.

So if you are ever lost in a city, pull out your Sony camcorder and fire up the GPS, at least you will know where you are geographically, on a street level wise.

Check out the full press release here.

Video Courtesy of Sony Japan:

Sony Rolly Gets an Internal Facelift

Rolly owners in the US….your prayers have been heard! A new Rolly firmware 2.0 and Rolly Remote software have been released. Once you perform the firmware upgrade, you will be able to do the following with Rolly Remote software:

Rolly Remote Software Features

The Rolly Remote software makes it possible to establish a Bluetooth connection between the Rolly player and the computer and perform the following Rolly functions from the computer:

• Open the “Rolly Track List” to view the track titles
• Select and play music tracks
• Control the Rolly player movements in conjunction with the music
• Connect to up to seven Rolly players at the same time

Head over to Sony Support page to get the needed files. * Software for your mobile phone to remotely control Rolly has not been announced. Hopefully Sony Ericsson could issue one?

Anyways, I am off to the upgrade my two Rollies.

Sony Acquiring Sony Insider

After a whirlwind of discussion, I am proud to announce today that Sony has acquired the exclusive rights to Sony Insider. We couldn’t be happier with Sony’s acquisition of the site and its owners – this is the dream we’ve been dreaming since the site was created. The primary goal of Sony Insider is to create an atmosphere where people can come together in a spirit of teamwork, and exercise to their heart’s desire the ability to influence this brand through their feedback.

We will now work for Sony in officially announcing products and controlling the release of information regarding new technology to the general public. At the same time, Sony Insider will continue to deliver a unique evaluation of the Sony brand that assists consumers in selecting Sony products. Sony has selected Sony Insider as an official media-centric website that inspires a sense of community to Sony users. Expect more exclusive interviews with people relevant to what’s current in the Sony experience and product line. Our relationship is going to change the entire thought process behind consumer and corporate interaction.

With a bigger budget and an official backing, we are proud to be working with Sony at such an exciting time in the Consumer Electronics atmosphere. Thank you Sony for making our dreams come true.

Sony’s Soundville Tests Shooting Location

Soundville Tests is Sony’s next big advertising campaign which is based on some quite impressive large scale experiments with audio technology. We covered the campaign in an earlier posting, and through our contacts we were able to obtain an exclusive picture of the warehouse in Iceland where the footage is being shot. Sony Europe also released a strange teaser video of the location, which seems to be quite eery in appearance. Any of our Icelandic readers recognize anything in the pictures or video?