Akio Morita

Akio Morita, the last five years who served with an unusual name, company founder Sony Corp. ", Died Oct. 3 at age 78. Outstanding inventor, creator of one of the leading consumer radio electronics, for many Japanese it until his death remained a boy, an upstart and wrongdoing of corporate traditions.
. Akio Morita was born in January 1921 in a suburb of Nagoya in the family for 15 generations, engaged in the production of sake
. His passion for electric devices and western classical music was born when the family got Morita rare in those days little thing - an electric phonograph. The fate of the young men had been solved, and in defiance of the will of his father, Akio neglected family business and went to enter the Imperial University of Osaka, which he graduated in 1944 with a diploma of physics
Morita had a lot to do. For example, - what is it without false modesty, acknowledged in his autobiography - make the world respect the products branded Made in Japan (before the second world mark "made in Japan" was associated by consumers with only poor quality). Create from scratch the largest corporations. Invent a number of unknowns before the goods. Reconcile markets in Japan and America.

Japanese by birth and blood, in business, Akio Morita was more like an American. In the "old Japanese" after the Second World War, was taken to scold the U.S. for "Coca-spalling civilization". Japanese business had to be done in Japanese, in accordance with the ancient national traditions - such was the prevailing view.

. However, due to electricity, were engaged in the old firm, belonging to the clans, zaibatsu, such as Hitachi, Toshiba (coming out of the group Mitsui), Mitsubishi Electric
. In the XIX century they traded products, dry goods, hardware, in the second half of the twentieth switched to every household appliances. From their point of view, even founded in 1912, Sharp and Matsushita Electric in 1918 were "young". What can we say about Sony, created in 1946 goduN

Birthday Sony (originally it was called Tokyo Tsushin kenkuse - Tokyo Research Laboratory of Telecommunications) - May 7, 1946. company with initial capital equal to $ 500, was founded by two former military engineers - Akio Morita and Masaru Ibuka. Their roles are divided as follows: Morita is engaged primarily in general management, Ibuka - the technical side. Business tandem lasted nearly half a century.
The room of the company - the burned-out war in the Tokyo department store Sirokiya ". Staff - 20. Profile deyatelnostiN Yes, there was no profile. Morita and Ibuka knew what to produce and sell a product, but could not figure out what kind. Was the idea of selling pies, but the founding fathers decided that any will be able to bake pies, but success can only bring something original.
So in a single copy was made instrument called elektrorisovarka. The principle of its work was this: at the bottom of a wooden tub laid elektrospiral. Wet rice closes an electrical circuit, the current heats the rice until cooked, rice dries up and automatically switches the circuit. Alas, in practice the figure turns out to be consistently undercooked, then digested. While going to experiment with a rice cooker and elektropechkoy (another instrument of unique design for cooking rice), was over the initial capital. And employees have to pay salaries. Cash managed to get by selling on the black market electric heaters. The principle of their action was even simpler - a spiral, lined with cloth.

The firm then moved to more complex technologies. Prefixes to the radio, allowing to take short-wave radios, enjoy great demand on the black market. Collect these devices accounted for under difficult circumstances - in a building that was organized to build, roof leaks. Soldering radio components accounted for under the umbrella.

The first large order was the Mixer for the station NHK. Upon delivery to the remote customer Ibuka saw in one of the rooms of the building NHK U.S. recorder Wilcox Gay, record which is not on the wire, and tape. It was decided to make the same. Ibuka, Morita easily persuaded, but the issue suddenly ran into the third most important person in the company - the chief accountant. Chief accountant had worked at his father Morita. At one time, friends Akio persuaded his father to release his son from a family business for the production of sake in the production of electrical goods. Persuaded, and his father even made his son a gift - "gave" his accountant. This is the accountant, on the one hand, was an expert in their field, on the other - the tradition and feared of all the technical innovations.

The problem had to be solved at the negotiating table, that is, in a restaurant. Accountants watered, fed and talked. And the company has initiated the establishment of Bobbin tape. The most serious technical problem was the manufacture of magnetic tape. Tape recorder was a rarity even in the U.S.. Because the only book on the subject, the engineers learned that the tape is a plastic base, which suffered a magnetic material. As the magnetic material was chosen as the iron powder, but then the question arose: how to fix it on film
Came to the rescue ... Figure. Conjee crushing and deposited on the tape, after which she poured powder. However, the only sound played by this material, was a sharp noise. The following examples were made by hand, too: a pan-fried on a griddle iron oxide was added varnish obtained is applied to the tape brushes. Quality of sound recording was disgusting. We had to find another material with magnetic properties. This material was oksolat iron. But to find this reagent in postwar Japan was virtually impossible. Morita has always acted as quickly. With his assistant, he traveled the city, finally stumbled on the only shop that sold the desired reagent. With two banks of powder, they returned to the firm to conduct further experiments.


First normal reel tape recorder Japanese production, known as G, was established only in 1950. For a long time Morita could not sell a single copy. "Toy" weighing 35 kg worth 170 thousand. yen. Average salary in Japan at that time was 17 times less. After a long unsuccessful attempts to find at least one private buyer Morita was able to sell a new product to the Supreme Court of Japan, which were badly needed stenographers. Representatives of the firm persuaded the officials that the tape can replace stenographer. The question "What would happen if the film pomnetsyaN" Morita without batting an eye, replied: "It must be easy to straighten and smooth". Question of the purchase of 20 tape recorders was resolved favorably.

"Type G" was too bulky and heavy machinery, and, in addition, charging the film with great skill. Morita realized that consumers want something that will not cause problems in the treatment. Engineers set to work, and by March 1951 appeared a model for home use - Type H. She was three times lighter than its predecessor (weighed "only" 13 kg) and had a handle to carry. In addition, the first time over the appearance of the tape bothered technical designer. Thus, Sony has entered a new, potentially huge market of home appliances. For "Type H" followed by an improved "Type R". Wheels of the Japanese industry of home audio whirled in a new rhythm.

Handicraft rice cooker and fried on a griddle the tape - it was the initial stage of company development Morita and Ibuki. The first major product was the transistor. As in many other cases, the idea formulated Akio Morita - a miniature radio receiver capable of providing good quality sound and at the same time fit in breast pocket of men's shirts. In 1953, the American company Western Electric was bought for $ 25 thousand. patent for a device called a transistor. The owners of the patent were very happy, because no idea where you can apply this same transistor, and offered to install it in the hearing aids. It was not yet developed their pocket radios Morita and Ibuka decided to put the transistor. Later, with the commercial success of a small radio, the word "transistor" stuck in the receiver itself.


The first transistor radio went on sale in 1955. He was very large and not in the pocket did not fit. After two years the market was released receiver less. "It was the world's smallest radio, . but he was still more than the usual man's shirt pocket, . - Later recalled Morita .- We ordered shirts for our salespeople with the increased number of pockets, . large enough, . to lower the receiver there. ",

. While the size of the receiver made fit the size of the pockets, the company Morita and Ibuki changed its name
. After a long study of dictionaries Akio Morita discovered the Latin word "sonus" - "sound". Simultaneously, it looked like the British slang sonny (boy, son). That's only native Japanese "dream-no" means "losing money", but because for the title does not do. Having thrown out one "n", Morita received the "Sony" (sony). The word sounded nice, did not mean anything, and so remained in the name of the company.


Subsequently, the British Royal Society of Arts celebrated the contribution of Akio Morita in the development of the English language - in words and sony walkman. However, a word invented the walkman not Morita. He thought himself a portable player. There are several legends about how the head Akia Morita had the idea of a portable tape recorder with headphones. But it is only known that in Sony's idea for a long time nobody likes. Sales tried to convince the chief that such goods do not buy one. The chief took full responsibility. In Morita's own words, he gave the engineers to develop a new product of the complete absence of marketing research. In his book "Made in Japan" Morita wrote: "We do not believe in market research that is not known to the public, so no need to hold them."
. However, when I had to give advertising agencies the model name, Morita in the office did not happen
. Some of his subordinates, clearly had problems with the English, proposed to call walkman (in a literal translation from English - 'walking-man). Returning, Morita ordered to change name. But it was too late - the ads run, tape labeled Walkman made. From the first day (ie summer 1979) product began to use a huge success. Strange word caught on so that when a batch of players with the name literate Roundabout, buyers in the U.S. and Britain did not want them to acquire and demand in the stores Walkman.

.
. In the list of goods, . the first time it was issued by Sony, . You can also include the first transistor television (1959), . first TV on liquid crystals (1962), . the first home videotape recorder (1964) and the first CD-ROM (developed jointly with Philips),
. Today Sony capital is estimated at 416 billion. yen, the company employs 21 thousand. man.

Man uncommon energy, Morita managed to combine work in a managerial position in one of the flagships of the Japanese industry with an active life. In the 40 years he began to play golf in the 50 - tennis, 60 - water skiing, and the age of 69 made his first scuba diving. With our attention, he did not pass and policies. In collaboration with the current governor of Tokyo Shintaro Ishihara Morita wrote the book "Japan that could say" no ", which became the pretext for a major row between Tokyo and Washington officials. In this book, Morita called American corporate culture of late 80's "relaxed and prone to abuse."
In Japan, Morita was considered a rebel. He, like Soichiro Honda, broke the established tradition for centuries. Nevertheless Morita - a striking example is the Eastern businessman. The Japanese are very tolerant to losses in the beginning of the company for subsequent long-term benefits. One of the axioms Morita said: "Market share is more important than immediate profits ... Despite some negative aspects, the competition is a key factor in the development of industry and technology. "
About some people, they say, that with their death ends era. Akio Morita, deserves such statements.
Despite the loud position of "founder", since 1994, Morita and Sony Corp. actually existed independently. Changes in the sector of household radio electronics in recent years are so significant that they easier to navigate the new business formation. Digital methods of information processing, multimedia, pervasive computerization, the convergence between the computer business and trade of household radio electronics - all signs of the new time. And already another generation of engineers and managers depend on whose fate will repeat entrants another novelty - Juicers player or Walkman.