more on Sony's Mylo Delivers Wireless

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Tim Onosko <onosko () gmail com>
Date: August 14, 2006 4:36:13 PM EDT
To: dave () farber net
Subject: Re: [IP] Sony's Mylo Delivers Wireless

Dave Farber:  For IP, if you think this is of interest to the group.

I have been doing some poking around with regard to Sony's mylo  
product, which I think is clearly a break from their standard fare.   
I have come to find out more details.

First, the product was apparently developed in the United States, not  
Japan.  It appears to have come from Sony's Palo Alto group, although  
another source told me that San Diego was involved.  In any case, it  
was developed well outside Sony's usual product development  
environment and on its own timetable.

Second, most other divisions in Sony, even those developing Internet  
and digital media solutions, were completely unaware of its  
development until the product announcement last week.  Several  
divisions with similar interests and ideas were caught flatfooted by  
the announcement.

Third, there is some evidence that the mylo was developed with Apple  
Computer squarely in its sights.  It was announced during Apple's  
developer conference in San Francisco.  It comes, like the iPod and  
MacBooks, in either black or white.  And, as noted, was developed in  
secrecy and will be delivered (if Sony is to be believed) almost  
immediately.  In contrast, we are still waiting for Sony's e-book,  
the Reader, which was announced in January, promised for April, now  
delayed until autumn.

And, finally, mylo represents a distinct tectonic shift inside of  
Sony, an embrace of open standards and alliances with Yahoo!, Google  
and Skype -- unheard of for a company with its not-invented-here  
attitude toward such things.  A bold move on the company's part,  
especially since there is no downstream revenue opportunity for Sony,  
although it will play DRM'd music and, presumably, DRM'd movies in  
the future.

But has Sony gone too far with this?  If mylo is a success (and I  
think it will be), how long will it take for the Chinese consumer  
electronics manufacturers to produce a $99 knockoff?  Months, I'd  
imagine.

This is going to be a very interesting product to watch.

- Tim Onosko


On Aug 14, 2006, at 1:14 PM, David Farber wrote:

> Begin forwarded message:
>
> From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne () warpspeed com>
> Date: August 14, 2006 8:47:36 AM EDT
> To: Dewayne-Net Technology List <dewayne-net () warpspeed com>
> Subject: [Dewayne-Net] Sony's Mylo Delivers Wireless
> Reply-To: dewayne () warpspeed com
>
>         Sony's Mylo Delivers Wireless
>
>
> Sony last week launched a WiFi broadband communication and  
> entertainment device to capitalize on the growth of wireless  
> internet access.
>
> The mylo personal communicator is capable of operating in any open  
> 802.11b wireless network, can be found on college campuses, in  
> public spaces and within private homes. The product is for people  
> who use instant messaging as a primary form of communications and  
> networking.
>
> The name mylo stands for "my life online" and the communicator  
> allows consumers use instant messaging, browse the internet, listen  
> to music, send e-mails and view photos.
>
> The oblong-shaped device features a 2.4 inch color LCD with a slide  
> out keyboard. The device, available in black or white, comes  
> embedded with popular instant messaging services such as Google  
> Talk instant messaging service, Skype and Yahoo! Messenger. The  
> services are free and the product does not require initial computer  
> setup or monthly service contract.
>
> For more about the product, go to: <http://www.sony.com/mylo>
>
> Weblog at: <http://weblog.warpspeed.com>
>
>
>
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