科技與社會-The Story of the Sony Walkman

第一組9611134 顏文偉9611117 賴弘恩9611113 陳柏睿9772109 郭美婷

Making Sense of the Walkman

科技 - 立體磁帶、體積小、可移動。 社會 - 帶來文化上的意義。

隨身聽所產生的文化意涵

High-tech modern Japanese’s Youth Entertainment

Section 1Culture in the age of electronic reproduction

About “Work of art”

In early time Uniqueness (which is unrepeatable) give it its claim to status as an authentic work of art.

The world of the Walkman the infinite repeatability and its variability is most striking.

Walter Benjamin says, one of the essential characteristics of the modern means of cultural production is its infinite repeatability.

ex. Movie camera

The walkman belong to a new generation

It appeared at the same time with the long list of new media—the new technologies of producing, storing and circulating images and sound, witch have transformed culture and communication over the last century.

ex. telephone, wireless, radio...most of these are deployed for routine, everyday uses.

They are both the sources and the channels for the circulation of meaning and they both originate and reproduce sounds or images---

Media

Culture and the media

Close connection between culture and the media.

Today, the production and consumption on a global scale of ‘cultural goods’ represents on of the most important economic activities.

Each of these new media technologies has a particular set of practices associated with it.

sometimes it’s called “social technology”.

Connection between the Walkman and the culture of late modernity

small size and portable it’s a consumer goods like one’s clothes : it got style.

designed for movement—for mobility

Representation

The practice of constructing meaning through the use of signs and language

Advertising

An economic as well as a representational practice

Advertising makes commodities speak

The power of advertising People represented in the advertisements are designed to represent the kinds of ideal target consumers which the advertisers and their clients think are or might be typical product-user

Some advertising example of the walkman

Please open the handout.

Section 2 Introduction:the many orgins of an idea

Who's the father of the Walkman?

1. Akio Morita(盛田紹夫 )? 2. Andreas Pavel? 3. Someone who can not be found in wikipedia?

This is a too broad a concept to have one patent owner who had ''invented'' the idea.

無論發明者為誰， Sony公司真正將 Walkman推廣至全世界。而何以 Sony公司能將一個全新的科技產品行銷至全球呢 ?而何以社會也能迅速的接受呢？

為了能了解 Sony的成功，我們將從 Sony的歷史、內部特色、生產文化，來逐步剖析。

Culture of production,context of innovation

創辦 Sony的重要人物

1. Akio Morita(盛田紹夫 ) 2. Masuru Ibuka(井深大 ) 3. Norio Ohga(大賀典雄 )

Sony： signifying Japan?

許多外國媒體將 Sony公司視為最能代表日本文化的公司； Walkman的輕薄短小，低價位高品質，似乎呼應了日本隨處可見的精緻文化(例如：飲食 ...等等。

但 Sony公司真的單單只是個 ''標準 ''的日本公司嗎 ?

傳統的日本公司特色

1. 階級制度分明 2. 對公司的忠誠 3. keiresu(經聯 )

Sony；日本與西方文化的混血兒

Sony公司雖然許多地方仍然維持日本文化的特色，但在許多方面也捨棄傳統，引進了西方國家的方法：

不再是 keiretsu(經聯 ) 錄用大學生，及 ''競爭對手的 ''人才。 彈性、有活力的工作環境。 (06)

Why called Sony?

Sony was derived from the Latin word 'sonus' meaning sound.

It was close to the American phrase 'sonny boy' which had become a slang term in Japan.

It could be pronounced the same in many different languages.

It was easy to remember.

Walkman是個憑空構想出的產物 ?

Walkman是個 ''意外 ''產生的商品 !

In October 1978, there was an organizational change in Sony's audio division, which had been producing radio-cassette recorders and tape recorders, was told that it would not be making the former any longer; this product category was transferred to the radio division.

The idea of the Walkman, according to this account, did not come from any moment of inspiration but out of 'serious discussion' that took place 'day and night'.

Making the Walkman to sell

Connecting production and consumption

Assembling for the young consumer：the mothers of the invention

Walkman最初是為了年輕族群對音樂的需求所 設計出來的產品，而為了符合年輕人的特性，

Walkman須滿足一個最重要的條件：

價錢便宜！

Section 3Designing the sony walkman and conferring it’s future

Designers as cultural intermediaries

To make artefacts sell,as we shall see in the case of the walkman,designers have to embody culture in the things they design.

The organization of design at sony

Enables the company to make products which both create and respond to consumer”needs” in a highly flexible manner. Three elments:

1.functional and occupational 2.designers relatively easy access 3.the sense in contemporary cultrual trends

Lifestyling the walkman

The visual”look” and tactile “feel” of a product are much important than the simple fuuction or basic”use” for consumers.

The walkman:how “Japanese” is it?

walkman can emerge certain Japan’s cultural chractreristics:

Miniaturization and an aesthetic of simplicity.

SONY WALKMAN 的世代演進

錄音帶 (07)

CD

MP3 (08)

手機 (Sony Ericsson w980)

新的競爭者 : I-pod touch (09)

電玩界之父 :久多良木健

Sony 的應對 :

Psp (play station portable) (10)

問題與討論

壹： Sony walkman一路從錄音帶、 CD、 MP3至 手機 (I phone samsung)，其產品演化的過程與人們的生活是否息息相關 ?

貳：一個科技產品的推出，只是單純營利，還是具有改變社會的功 效 ? 請具體說明之

叁： SONY在面對百家 3C科技產品公司的環敵下，它該如何面對這巨大的危機 ?

謝謝觀賞

資料來源：http://cndls.georgetown.edu/applications/posterTool/index.cfmhttp://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/WikiDoing cutural studies:The Story Of SONY WALKMANhttp://www.sonystyle.com.tw/walkman/#/home影片來源 : youtube