Today's blog is a continuation of the previous edition from last week. Before looking back at the rest of my business trip to New York, I would like to say a few words on the 50th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Japan and China, which was commemorated on September 29th, the day I posted my previous blog.

■ 50th anniversary of normalization of diplomatic relations between Japan and China

As you know, China is an important base for our business operations, as well as a key market. We began full-scale operations in China in the 1980s, and started production of televisions, video and other products in the country in the 1990s. Today, our business operations extend to the area of entertainment, including pictures, music, games and animation, and the Sony Group as a whole employs approximately 7,000 people. The Japan Business Federation ("Keidanren") hosted a reception to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Japan and China in 1972, which I attended together with Sony Group China Representative Toshimoto Mitomo.

■ Sony Music Global Music Meeting

Now, I would like to go back to the Sony Music Entertainment (SME) Global Music Meeting, which I was unable to cover in my previous blog. The meeting took place in New York from September 19 - 23, with approximately 150 attendees from around the world. In addition to speeches from CEO Rob Stringer and other members of SME top management, it also featured presentations from guest speakers, with many initiatives being taken to enable a high level of interaction between the speakers and participants. I have said many times before, including in this blog, that "the essence of entertainment is to be live," and sharing this space and time with everyone at SME, has renewed my perception of the power of live, in-person experiences.

Rob Stringer, Chairman of Sony Music Group and CEO of SME, delivering his opening speech	Jon Platt, Chairman and CEO, Sony Music Publishing

I delivered my speech on day two of the event, and in my opening remarks I stated that sound is the origin of Sony's technology. This is reflected in the fact that our company name "Sony" comes from the Latin word "sonus," from which the words "sound" and "sonic" are derived.

G-type Tape Recorder (1950)	Transistor Radio TR-55 (1955)	1st Generation Walkman TPS-L2 (1979)

It can also be said that the music business represents the origins of Sony's diverse entertainment operations. Our music business began with the establishment of CBS/Sony Records as a joint venture between US company CBS and Sony. Twenty years later in 1988 Sony acquired CBS Records, and in 1991 we changed the name of our music business to Sony Music Entertainment. 2004 saw the formation of a joint venture between SME and BMG, and in 2008 Sony BMG became a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony.

The first M&A that I oversaw after becoming CEO of Sony was the acquisition of EMI Music Publishing in 2018. It was the second largest M&A in Sony's history, based on an enterprise value of 4.75 billion US dollars, and was possible thanks to the support of CFO Totoki-san and Rob Stringer. Jon Platt joined the team in 2019, and is leading our business at Sony Music Publishing.

1968 - CBS Chairman at the time Frank Stanton (third from left) with Akio Morita (second from left),
Norio Ohga (fourth from left) and Toshio Ozawa (fifth from left), who would later become President of CBS/Sony

The music market had been on a downward trend until 2014, but has been growing again since then, and at Sony we are proactively investing in growth. In this expanding market, we will continue to aim to be the brand chosen by creators around the world, while valuing our commitment to getting closer to artists and songwriters.

At this meeting I was struck again by the commitment of all of you at SME towards learning. I was greatly impressed by everyone's humility in studying the market environment and industry trends, without resting on the laurels of being a major label, and I myself learned much from this experience. As I mentioned in my previous blog, I hope that we can continue to learn together, across the Sony Group as a whole.

Guest speakers were invited to provide learning opportunities on industry and technology trends.
Pictured is a session on the metaverse by investor Matthew Ball. Click here to view the presentation he gave as part of panel discussion hosted by SGC last year.

At a luncheon with Matthew Ball	Matthew's new book, "The Metaverse: And How It Will Revolutionize Everything"

(click to enlarge)

After the meeting, I had the opportunity to enjoy a live concert by Harry Styles and also MJ the Musical. At the concert, seeing so many across the audience use their smartphones to capture videos, reaffirmed my desire to fulfill the needs of creators, in this case in the form of smartphone users, through technology.

I hope you will all share your thoughts and feedback on this two-part blog. I look forward to hearing from you.