As I shared in my January 8 message to you all (link), the spread of COVID-19 is intensifying around the world. At Sony we will continue to take all the countermeasures we can, with the health and safety of you and your families our foremost priority.

January 11 marked the launch of CES2021, and this year we unveiled Sony's presence via a digital press event. Through the newly-launched digital event platform Sony Square, we showcased everything from our latest products such as PS5 and BRAVIA XR, to our virtual production technology and a new immersive reality concert experience. Together with announcements such as the start of public road tests of VISION-S, and the first unveiling of the design for our Airpeak drone equipped with an Alpha camera, I believe that once again we were able to demonstrate Sony's evolution as a creative entertainment company.

Now, in my first blog of the year, I would like to share with you my impressions of Yokohama Minato Mirai 21 (Minato Mirai), which I visited at the beginning of the year, and my reflections on the book "No Rules Rules," which I read over the holidays.

■ Minato Mirai

In December last year, Sony City Minato Mirai (SCMM), the site of the new Sony Corporation, opened in the Minato Mirai district of Yokohama, located about 20 kilometers southwest of Sony's headquarters in Shinagawa. My son and I walked around the area of Yokohama Station and SCMM at the start of the new year, and along the way I noticed that the area is home to many companies that share a connection with Sony.

©OpenStreetMap contributors
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My son during our walk. SCMM is the nearest building in the center of the photo.	The view from SCMM's top (18th) floor.

For instance, the Shiseido Global Innovation Center, which opened in April 2019, is located next to SCMM. I actually attended the opening ceremony for this building, where there is a 16K x 4K (19.3m x 5.4m) Crystal LED display installed within the lobby. The headquarters of Koei Tecmo Games, a key partner for our PlayStation business, is also located nearby, and this building also houses Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Group's live music venue, "KT Zepp Yokohama" on its first and second floors. With the opening of SCMM, we are becoming part of a community that also includes Murata Manufacturing, which took over Sony's battery business and with whom we continue to do business, as well as companies such as LG, Nissan and Fuji Xerox, which we have business relationships with, all within walking distance.

Crystal LED at the Shiseido Global Innovation Center	KT Zepp Yokohama

SCMM will bring together parts of the Electronics Products & Solutions (EP&S) functions currently located in Shinagawa (consumer-use camera business) and Atsugi (solutions business centered around broadcasting and professional products, and medical business). By bringing these EP&S functions together in the same location, from April 1st I look forward to the new Sony Corporation working together as one in the pursuit of continued growth and evolution.

■"No Rules Rules"

I would also like to touch on the book "No Rules Rules" by Netflix co-founder, Chairman and CEO Reed Hastings, which I read over the holidays.

Netflix began as a by-mail DVD rental service, and launched its online DTC service in 2007. It is similar to Spotify in the way that it rapidly created a brand-new marketplace with limited physical capital investment, and I think that both companies are doing an outstanding job of managing their business.

"No Rules Rules" examines the corporate culture at Netflix, and the importance of corporate culture is something I was given even more cause to reflect on over the last year. In addition to our Purpose & Values, I believe that at Sony we must emphasize a culture of information sharing, protecting people's rights to express their opinions, valuing different points of views, and of tolerating and learning from trial and error. While these may seem like fundamental values, there can be many challenges to making them take root, and reading this book reaffirmed my strong belief in the importance of cultivating this kind of corporate culture here at Sony.

I would also like to thank you for the extensive feedback I received in response to my previous blog. Your thoughts and diverse opinions are very meaningful to me, so as always, I look forward to receiving your comments.