Form 6-K
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D. C. 20549
FORM 6-K
REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER
Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16 of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
For the month of January 2007
Commission File Number: 001-06439
SONY CORPORATION
(Translation of registrant's name into English)
7-35 KITASHINAGAWA 6-CHOME, SHINAGAWA-KU, TOKYO, JAPAN
(Address of principal executive offices)
The registrant files annual reports under cover of Form 20-F.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports
under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F,
Form 20-F X Form 40-F __
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information
contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the
Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
Yes No X
If "Yes" is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant in
connection with Rule 12g3-2(b):82-______
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
SONY CORPORATION
(Registrant)
By: /s/ Nobuyuki Oneda
(Signature)
Nobuyuki Oneda
Executive Vice President and
Chief Financial Officer
Date: January 25, 2007
List of materials
Documents attached hereto:
i) Press release announcing AEGON and Sony Life to establish life insurance
company in Japan
The Hague / Tokyo, January 25, 2007
AEGON and Sony Life to establish life insurance company in Japan
AEGON N.V. ("AEGON") and Sony Life Insurance Co., Ltd. ("Sony Life") today
announce their intention to establish a life insurance company in Japan. The 50/
50 joint venture will develop annuity products, initially focusing on variable
annuity products, that will be distributed through Sony Life's Lifeplanner(R)
channel as well as through banks and other financial institutions. Sony Life,
distinguished for its extensive "life planning" consulting business, regards
this joint venture opportunity with AEGON as a means for strengthening its "life
planning" principle by broadening the range of product offerings. The
partnership between AEGON and Sony Life is expected to be operational early in
2008, subject to final agreement and regulatory licensing and approval.
"We are very excited by the prospect of combining our expertise and skills with
the highly-respected brand and distribution strength of Sony Life," said AEGON
Chairman and CEO Donald J. Shepard. "The Japanese market presents a significant
opportunity for companies that are able to develop innovative products and
services that can effectively respond to the developing need. Together we look
forward to building a platform that will be the basis for ongoing collaboration
in the years ahead."
"Sony Life believes that, along with life insurance products, individual annuity
insurance products will be another core pillar of Sony Life's "life planning"
principle given the aging population. In pursuing our commitment as a life
insurance company to protect customers throughout their lives, Sony Life has
decided to establish the new company with a reputed and experienced player like
AEGON in order to enhance our capability to offer cutting-edge annuity products
to the customers promptly," said Sony Life President, Taro Okuda.
The annuity market in Japan has been rapidly growing, driven by variable annuity
products following the deregulation of sales through banks in 2002. Variable
annuity assets totaled over JPY 10 trillion (USD 85 billion) at the end of March
2006, and the sales were nearly JPY 2 trillion (USD 17 billion) in the 1st half
of fiscal year of 2006 (April - September 2006). It is generally anticipated
that demand for variable annuity products in Japan will continue to be strong.
Outline of the New Company
Corporate name: To be discussed
Headquarters: Tokyo, Japan (planned)
Initial capitalization: approximately JPY 20 billion (100% basis)
Corporate establishment: Within 2007
Launch of sale: Q1, 2008
Equity ownership: Sony Life 50%, AEGON 50%
Management: Co-managed via 2 representative directors (one from Sony Life and
the other from AEGON)
Number of employees: About 60 persons (at the launch of sale)
ABOUT AEGON
AEGON is one of the world's largest life insurance and pension companies, and a
strong provider of investment products. AEGON empowers its local business units
to identify and provide products and services that meet the evolving needs of
its customers, using distribution channels best suited to their local markets.
AEGON takes pride in balancing a local approach with the power of an expanding
global operation.
With headquarters in The Hague, the Netherlands, AEGON companies employ
approximately 27,000 people. AEGON's three major markets are the United States,
the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. In addition, the Group is present in a
number of other countries including Canada, China, India, Taiwan, Czech
Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Spain.
AEGON is a leading provider of variable annuity products in the Americas with
USD 5 billion in sales as reported in the first nine months of 2006 and over USD
50 billion in variable annuity balances as of September 30, 2006. AEGON aims to
transfer products and expertise across its various markets and is in the process
of introducing variable annuity products in Europe, based on the success of
product features initially introduced in the US market.
ABOUT Sony Life
Sony Life Insurance Co., Ltd., is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Financial
Holdings Inc. and accounts for the major portion of the Sony Financial Holdings
Group in terms of history and scale of business. Sony Life was the first company
in Japan which introduced the "Lifeplanner(R) system"- providing optimal life
insurance products tailored to the specific needs of each and every customer
based on consulting expertise by Lifeplanner(R) sales employees who possess
advanced financial knowledge and abundant experience. Customers' satisfaction
from this approach has enabled Sony Life to continue expanding its business each
year since it began operations. Sony Life has requested ratings from several
agencies to help customers make objective decisions concerning its ability to
finance insurance and pay claims and benefits. Standard & Poor's has assigned
Sony Life an A+ rating and describes the Company as offering "strong" insurer
financial strength. Moody's Investors Service has assigned an Aa3 rating and
describes the Company as offering excellent financial security (both as of June
2006).
Profile (as of the end of September 2006 and in Japanese statutory accounting
principle unless otherwise stated):
Establishment: August 1979
Capitalization: JPY 65 billion
Employees: 5,264 (including 3,804 Lifeplanner(R))
Total assets: JPY 3,204 billion
Insurance policy in force: JPY29,674 billion (the sum of individual
life insurance and individual annuities)
Income from insurance premiums and others: JPY290 billion (in the 1st
half of the year of FY 2006)
Fiscal year: April 1 to March 31
("Lifeplanner" is a registered trademark of Sony Life Insurance Co., Ltd.)
Forward looking statements
The statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts may
be forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as 'believe', 'estimate', 'target',
'intend', 'may', 'expect', 'anticipate', 'predict', 'project', 'counting on',
'plan', 'continue', 'want', 'forecast', 'should', 'would', 'is confident' and
'will' and similar expressions as they relate to AEGON and/or Sony Life are
intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements are not
guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and
assumptions that are difficult to predict. Neither AEGON nor Sony Life
undertakes any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking
statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.
All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties
that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations,
including, but not limited to, the following:
Changes in general economic conditions, particularly in the United States, the
Netherlands and the United Kingdom;
Changes in the performance of financial markets, including emerging markets,
including:
The frequency and severity of defaults by issuers in AEGON's and/or Sony
Life's fixed income investment portfolios; and
The effects of corporate bankruptcies and/or accounting restatements on the
financial markets and the resulting decline in value of equity and debt
securities AEGON and/or Sony Life hold(s);
The frequency and severity of insured loss events;
Changes affecting mortality, morbidity and other factors that may affect the
profitability of AEGON's and/or Sony Life's insurance products;
Changes affecting interest rate levels and continuing low interest rate levels
and rapidly changing interest rate levels;
Changes affecting currency exchange rates, including the EUR/USD and EUR/GBP
exchange rates;
Increasing levels of competition in the United States, the Netherlands, the
United Kingdom and emerging markets;
Changes in laws and regulations, particularly those affecting AEGON's and/or
Sony Life's operations, the products AEGON and/or Sony Life sell(s) and the
attractiveness of certain products to consumers;
Regulatory changes relating to the insurance industry in the jurisdictions in
which AEGON and/or Sony Life operate(s);
Acts of God, acts of terrorism, acts of war and pandemics;
Changes in the policies of central banks and/or governments;
Litigation or regulatory action that could require AEGON and/or Sony Life to pay
significant damages or change the way AEGON and/or Sony Life do(es) business;
Customer responsiveness to both new products and distribution channels;
Competitive, legal, regulatory, or tax changes that affect the distribution cost
of or demand for AEGON's and/or Sony Life's products;
AEGON's and/or Sony Life's failure to achieve anticipated levels of earnings or
operational efficiencies as well as other cost saving initiatives;
The impact on AEGON's and/or Sony Life's reported financial results and
financial condition as a result of the adoption of International Financial
Reporting Standards.