l n L r o d u c L l o n L o

M a r k e L l n g
8 u s l n e s s 1 2 0

4 / 1 3 / 2 0 0 8
8rlan MoaLs
A markeLlng plan focuslng on Sony's laysLaLlon 3

MarkeLlng lan
Sony laysLaLlon 3
2
LxecuLlve Summary
1hls markeLlng plan ls looklng aL Sony's laysLaLlon 3 (S3) 1hls powerful plece of hardware ls Lhe
cuLLlng edge of gamlng enLerLalnmenL 1he S3 has been ouL for a llLLle over a year and ln LhaL Llme
lL
has proved Lo be a hardcore gamers dream Sony goL lnLo Lhe console gamlng markeL ln laLe 1994
1he
concepL for Lhe orlglnal laysLaLlon (lL was under a dlfferenL name SnLS Cu) was acLually broughL up
ln
a [olnL parLnershlp wlLh Sony and nlnLendo ln Lhe laLe 80's however when Lhe Llme came Lo
announce
Lhelr new hardware nlnLendo reread over Lhelr earller conLracL and found Lhe agreemenL Lo no
longer
be saLlsfacLory As a resulL Sony Look all Lhe research Lhey had done and began work on Lhe Sony
laysLaLlon

3
1able of ConLenLs
SlLuaLlon Analysls
4
lnLernal LnvlronmenL
4
key LxecuLlves 4
8oard of ulrecLors 4
Lmployees 4
LxLernal LnvlronmenL
4
CusLomers 4
CompeLlLors
3
Medla 3
Suppllers
3
ulsLrlbuLors
3
SWC1
6
SLrengLhs 6
Weakness 6
CpporLunlLy
6
1hreaLs 6
MarkeLlng Cb[ecLlves
7
MarkeLlng SLraLegles
8
SelecL 1argeL MarkeLs and oslLlonlng
8
roducL SLraLegles
8
rlclng SLraLegles
9
romoLlonal SLraLegles
9
Supply Chaln SLraLegles
10
lmplemenL and ConLrol Lhe MarkeLlng lan
11
AcLlon lans
11
8esponslblllLy
11
MeasuremenL and ConLrol
12

4
SlLuaLlon Analysls
lnLernal LnvlronmenL
key LxecuLlves
- 8yo[l Chubachl resldenL and LlecLronlcs CLC
- Poward SLrlnger Chalrman and CLC
- kaLsuml lhara LxecuLlve uepuLy resldenL Cfflcer ln charge of Consumer roducL Croup
- ?uLaka nakagawa LxecuLlve uepuLy resldenL Cfflcer ln charge of SemlconducLor and
ComponenL Croup
- nobuyukl Cneda LxecuLlve uepuLy resldenL and Chlef llnanclal Cfflcer
- kel[l klmura LxecuLlve vlce resldenL Cfflcer ln charge of 1echnology SLraLegles lnLellecLual
roperLy and LlecLronlcs 8uslness SLraLegles
- nlcole Sellgman LxecuLlve vlce resldenL and Ceneral Counsel
8oard of ulrecLors
- Poward SLrlnger
- 8yo[l Chubachl
- kaLsuml lhara
- ?oLaro kobayashl
- Aklshlge Ckada
- Sakle 1 lukushlma
- ?oshlklko Mlyauchl
- ?oshlakl ?amauchl
- Slr eLer 8onfleld
- lueo SumlLa
- lu[lo Cho
- 8yu[l ?asuda
Lmployees
Sony has over 163000 (accordlng Lo Cnn) employees ln many flelds ranglng from gamlng hardware
and
sofLware oLher enLerLalnmenL hardware muslc and movles buslness people and so many more
LxLernal LnvlronmenL
CusLomers
1he maln cusLomers for Sony's S3 are Lhe hardcore gamlng communlLy 1hese people are usually
men
from Lhe ages of 1330 Powever wlLh Lhe laysLaLlon 3's supporL for 8luray Lechnology Lhe
secondary
3
cusLomers would be Lhose lnLeresLed ln Lhe hlghesL quallLy of movle enLerLalnmenL Lhls group could
be
anyone of any age
CompeLlLors
Sony's Lwo blg rlvals ln Lhe gamlng lndusLry are nlnLendo (who have been ln Lhe gamlng buslness for
over 20 years) and MlcrosofL (who have only been ln Lhe console gamlng buslness for less Lhan 10
years) WlLh Lhls heaLed compeLlLlon Sony ls forced Lo glve Lhelr cusLomers Lhe laLesL and greaLesL
ln
gamlng Lechnology and experlence
Medla
1he medla has had Lhelr eyes on Sony long before Lhey began ln Lhe gamlng lndusLry 1he medla can
help promoLe Sony's games and hardware however lL can also be Lhe reason sales decrease lL all
depends on whaL Lhe medla happens Lo be focused on LhaL week LlLher way Lhe medla ls one blg
reason why people know abouL Lhe work Sony ls dolng ln Lhe gamlng lndusLry
Suppllers
Sony relles heavlly on lLs suppllers Lo geL Lhelr raw maLerlals and some preconsLrucLed parLs so Lhey
can
develop and produce Lhelr gamlng hardware and sofLware Some of Lhese suppllers lnclude nvldla
(graphlcs cards) l8M (processor) and 1erra SofL SoluLlons (operaLlng sysLem) Sony has had a long
relaLlonshlp wlLh mosL of lLs suppllers and has undersLood Lhe lmporLance of Lhose relaLlonshlps
ulsLrlbuLors
Sony does sell some of lLs own hardware and sofLware from onllne Powever Lhe largesL amounL of
Lhelr sales come from dlsLrlbuLers such as WalMarL CameSLop Amazon and more
6
SWC1
SLrengLhs
1 Always glvlng Lhelr cusLomer Lhe laLesL and greaLesL gamlng hardware and sofLware
2 PlghquallLy hardware ouLlasLs mosL of lLs compeLlLor's hardware
3 ALLuned Lo whaL Lhelr hardcore gamers' wanLs are
Weakness
1 1helr hlghquallLy hardware hlgh prlces (S3 sLarLlng prlce was $600)
2 1helr gamlng sofLware belng on Lhe new 8luray formaL causlng S3 sofLware prlces Lo be $60
70 each
CpporLunlLy
1 WlLh nlnLendo unable Lo meeL demand for Lhelr Wll Lhe S3's lower prlce could convlnce
people walLlng for Wll's Lo buy avallable S3s lnsLead
2 lf Lhey are able Lo geL a hlgher cusLomer LurnouL Lhey may be able Lo lower Lhelr prlces Lo oLher
game sLandards on sofLware Lo lncrease S3 sofLware sales
3 WlLh Lhe recenL movle formaL war belng over beLween 8luray and Puuvu Sony could geL
more movle companles onboard wlLh 8luray Lo lncrease Lhe S3's aLLracLlveness Lo movle
buffs
1hreaLs
1 eople who were lnLeresLed ln S3s are qulckly Lurnlng Lo Lhe xbox 360 Lo meeL Lhelr budgeL
gamlng needs
2 1he economy ls hurLlng Lhe sales Lo gamers everywhere CurrenLly nlnLendo ls feellng Lhls ln
Lhelr handheld markeL buL Lhls could qulckly LhreaLen Lhe S3's sales

7
MarkeLlng Cb[ecLlves
1he flrsL year of Lhe S3 has been a llLLle less Lhan expecLed 1he hlgh prlce of Lhe hardware ls parLly
Lo
blame for Lhls 1o approach Lhls lssue Sony has lowered Lhe prlce of Lhe hardware ln recenL monLhs
ln
hopes of lncreaslng hardware and sofLware sales WlLh demands for Lhe nlnLendo Wll noL belng
meL
Lhls lowered prlce wlll hopefully sLeal away some of Lhe markeL share from nlnLendo Also wlLh Lhe
vldeo formaL belng over 8luray sales should lncrease and more fllm companles should [ump
onboard
wlLh Sony's 8luray formaL Lhls should ln Lurn lncrease S3 sales slnce lLs' prlce ls lower Lhan many
or
comparable Lo sLandalone 8luray players 1hls wlll help expand Lhe S3's cusLomer reach

8
MarkeLlng SLraLegles
SelecL 1argeL MarkeLs and oslLlonlng
Sony uses Lhe newesL and greaLesL Lechnology Lo appeal Lo Lhelr cusLomers 1he people who are
mosL
lnLeresLed ln sLaylng upLodaLe wlLh Lhe newesL Lechnology are usually men of Lhe ages 1330 1o
reach
LhaL markeL Lhey make games LhaL are aLLracLlve Lo men of Lhose ages Lhese games Lend Lo be Lhe
shooLers and hlgh acLlon games such as klll Zone and Cod of War Powever Lhey do make games for
younger chlldren Lhese games have a more advenLure based game play such as !ak and uaxLer and
Crash 8andlcooL
8eyond gamlng Sony also hopes Lo reach movle buffs wlLh Lhelr hlghdeflnlLlon movle playback
Lhanks
Lo 8luray Lechnology 8luray offers Lhe laLesL advancemenL ln movle enLerLalnmenL experlence
1he
deLall of Lhese movles ls so good LhaL you can llLerally see lndlvldual pores on people's faces As you
mlghL expecL Lhls means deLall on everyLhlng ls very hlgh and movle buffs love Lhls
roducL SLraLegles
1he S3 offers Lhe mosL advanced vlsuals and audlo of any oLher game console and mosL compuLers
Pardcore gamers wanL Lhelr games Lo be more vlsually pleaslng and LhaL ls exacLly whaL Sony has
glven
Lhem 1hey have changed very llLLle abouL conLrol seLup excepL Lhey have added some moLlon
senslLlvlLy (afLer Lhey saw nlnLendo unvell Lhls feaLure ln Lhe Wll) Lhls means LhaL people who have
played S1 and/or S2 won'L have Lo learn how Lo hold and use Lhe conLroller all over agaln Also
Lhere
are a loL of classlc games avallable for download vla Lhe laysLaLlon neLwork (for a prlce of course)
Also
laLer models offered backwards compaLlblllLy wlLh S1 and S2 games
1hey have lncluded 8luray playback as a feaLure on Lhe S3 1hls wlll LempL people on Lhe markeL
for a
8luray player Lo poLenLlally buy Lhe S3 lnsLead slnce lLs' prlce ls very close or cheaper Lhan currenL
8luray players
9
rlclng SLraLegles
1hough lL has proved Lo be less successful Lhan hoped Sony sLarLed Lhe S3 aL a very hlgh prlce of
$600
and sofLware aL $6070 1helr hope was Lo geL much of whaL Lhey spenL on Lhe S3 back ln a qulck
Llme
from Lhose eager enough Lo adopL Lhe new gamlng sysLem Powever Lhe numbers were lower Lhan
expecLed Sony Lhen lowered Lhe S3 prlce hoplng Lo lncrease sales Sony seems Lo be uslng Lhe
MarkeL
Sklmmlng rlclng hoplng Lo geL as much as posslble from each markeL Slnce Sony ls one of Lhe Lop
name
brands Lhls Lechnlque was very worLh uslng
romoLlonal SLraLegles
8eyond Lhe greaL graphlcs and famlllar game play Lhe maln selllng polnL of Lhe S3 ls Lhe 8luray
play
back 1he facL LhaL you can buy a gamlng sysLem and are able Lo waLch movles on lL Loo ls a greaL
Lhlng
1hls was Lhe same way wlLh Lhe S2 Lhousands were sold worldwlde [usL as a uvu player slnce lL
was
backed by Sony's nlce warranLy and was made wlLh Lhe wonderful Sony Louch
Sony also has Lhe laysLaLlon neLwork LhaL offers downloadable games 1hls feaLure allows Lhem Lo
sell
polnL cards conLalnlng polnL whlch can be used Lo download classlc S1 LlLles cusLom games and
someLlmes downloadable feaLures such as exLra songs for games llke CulLar Pero 1hls same feaLure
also allows players ln Lwo dlfferenL counLrles Lo play a mulLlplayer game agalnsL each oLher vla Wl
ll
1he S3 also offers many games LhaL have llnk supporL for uslng Lhe S (laysLaLlon orLable) for
exLra
feaLures or as a subsLlLuLe conLroller vla wlreless Sony also supporLs backwards compaLlblllLy wlLh
S1/S2 games

10
Supply Chaln SLraLegles
- Sony buys parLs from dlfferenL suppllers Lo consLrucL Lhe S3's
- Sony Lhen consLrucLs Lhe S3 unlLs ln !apan
- AfLer repeaLed LesLlng Sony beglns selllng Lhe S3 ln !apan and ln Lhe uS shorLly afLer and so
on
- lrom here Lhey are Laken and sold aL Lhe dlfferenL dlsLrlbuLors

11
lmplemenL and ConLrol Lhe MarkeLlng lan
AcLlon lans
1aklng full advanLage of Lhe shorLage of Wll unlLs Sony ls Lrylng Lo make sure Lhere are S3 on
shelves
aL all Llmes Also Lhey have lowered Lhelr prlces slnce Lhelr release ln hopes of geLLlng people Lo buy
S3
lnsLead for all of lLs feaLures rlor Lo Lhe release of Lhe S3 Sony saw nlnLendo's lnnovaLlve ldea for
moLlon senslLlvlLy afLer Lhls Lhey wenL back Lo Lhe drawlng board and added some moLlon
senslLlvlLy
supporL Lo Lhelr conLroller
ln an efforL Lo lncrease sales vs Lhe xbox 360 Sony ls pushlng Lhe polnL LhaL Lhey have had Lhlrd
parLy
supporL for greaL games such as MeLal Cear Solld serles and Lhe long llne of llnal lanLasy LlLles 1he
facL
LhaL S3 8luray dlsks hold nearly flve Llmes Lhe amounL of lnformaLlon as Lhe oLher Lwo sysLem's
dlsk
(boLh nlnLendo and MlcrosofL sLuck wlLh normal double layer
1
uvu's) Lhls helps show how lndepLh Lhe
S3 games could poLenLlally be
8esponslblllLy
Slnce Sony knows Lhe lmporLance of solvlng problems such as Alzhelmer's and cancer Sony has bullL
a
feaLure lnLo Lhe S3 (LhaL can be dlsabled) LhaL when your S3 ls noL ln use and has a hlgh speed
connecLlon allows SLanford unlverslLy Lo use your S3's hardware Lo help conducL research on Lhelr
loldlng[home pro[ecL 1hls pro[ecL has been around slnce 2000 and has been uslng people's (who
slgned up) compuLers Lo help ln Lhls research Slnce a loL of compuLers go unused and lefL on around
Lhe
world SLanford uses LhaL Lechnology Lo help ln compuLaLlonal research on Lhese and oLher dlseases
1hls feaLure wlll noL only help flghL dlseases buL wlll glve Lhe S3 owner a slnce of saLlsfacLlon
knowlng
Lhey are helplng flghL Lhese dlseases and are helplng geL one sLep closer Lo flndlng a cure 1hls
lnformaLlon was provlded by an arLlcle by Mlke nagle

1
uouble layer uvu's hold 83 C8s of lnformaLlon whereas 8luray holds almosL 30 C8s
12
MeasuremenL and ConLrol
8eyond [usL Lhe sales flgures Lelllng Sony how well Lhelr S3 hardware ls selllng sales flgures
for Lhelr games Wlll connecLlon acLlvlLy levels Lhe number of downloaded games and
cusLomer feedback leL Sony know how well Lhe S3 hardware ls really belng recelved by Lhe
consumers lrom Lhls feedback Lhey make needed sofLware flxes ln Lhe form of sysLem updaLe
13
Works ClLed
Cnn lorLune 300 2007" Cnn 2008 13 Aprll 2008 Moneycnncom
nagle Mlke Sony S3 owers Alzhelmers 8esearch" LabLechnologlsLcom 20 March 2007 13
Aprll
2008 wwwlabLechnologlsLcom
Sony CorporaLlon 2008 Sony LnLerLalnmenL 13 Aprll 2008 SonyneL