Fascinating story that details how Sony failed miserably with their online music service, Connect. What is interesting about this, and indeed many large companies that have long track records of success and are disrupted by a new market entrant, is that they seem fall back into the role of fast following the new leader as opposed to disrupting the market themselves. Look at Sony’s retail stores as another example of this, they are showcases of Sony technology in an attempt to mimic Apple’s retail stores, but they are sterile and do nothing to encourage people to congregate there and as a result of that they are largely empty. I really can’t imagine that Sony is making money with these stores, as opposed to Apple which is generating $2.2b in revenue from their retail operations.
[print version] How Sony failed to Connect, again | CNET News.com:
Critics now say the Connect software debacle has further destabilized Sony’s online music plans, and ceded 14 critical months of development and consumer awareness to Apple.