Sony Group Corporation (6758) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Thank you very much for participating in our meeting despite your very busy schedules. We will now start Sony Group Corporation Sustainability Meeting 2023. I will act as the moderator. My name is [ Ishii ] from Corporate Communications. Today, we will hear from Chairman and CEO, Mr. Yoshida; Senior Executive Vice President, Mr. Kambe; Ms. Shippee of Sustainability department and then we will have a question-and-answer session. And the entire schedule will be about 90 minutes. At the outset, we will have an explanation from Mr. Yoshida.

Hello, everyone, this is Kenichiro Yoshida. At Sony, we strive to create Kando or emotion and deliver it to the world, based on our purpose to fill the world with emotion, through the power [Audio Gap]. People have always desired entertainment. Kando content such as games, music, pictures, anime and sports enrich people's lives and play an important role in society. Furthermore, entertainment has the power to bring people together, rather than divide them. Sony Pictures' animated film series, Spider-Verse, is connecting many creators and users. The series is based on the concept that anyone can wear the mask. It is a story that expresses the importance of diversity, by showing how everyone has the power to step up and be a hero, regardless of race or gender with Midories, a children's group centered around SDGs, is another creative example that has brought people together. Their song, The Swallow, is based on a story selected from works submitted by young people who will lead our future and is focused on the theme of living together. There is no limit to the creativity that generates such Kando. Technology empowers creators to exert their creativity, leading to the further evolution of entertainment. Through initiatives, such developing products that expand the creative possibilities for people with visual impairment and enhancing accessibility on the front lines of video production, we aim to support creators in many ways through technology and contribute to the realization of an inclusive society. Kando is created and experienced by vehicle. Today, we will be presenting the progress of our global funds, which are established to support diverse people, our contributions to an inclusive society and initiatives addressing environmental issues. Together with our approximately 110,000 employees, we aim to continue to create social value in addition to the sustainable growth of the Sony Group, so that we can further extend the social significance of Kando throughout the world.

Hello, everyone. My name is Shiro Kambe. This year marks the sixth meeting on sustainability since the first one was held in 2018, when Mr. Yoshida took office. As mentioned in Mr. Yoshida's speech, Sony strives to create Kando and deliver it to the world based on its purpose to fill the world with emotion, through the power of creativity and technology. Sony to fill the world with emotion. It is necessary to create a society in which everyone can live with peace of mind in a healthy global environment. Our sustainability initiatives cover a wide range of areas. But today, I will focus my presentation on the initiatives addressing global social issues. Our efforts to contribute to an inclusive society such as in the area of accessibility, initiatives addressing environmental issues. The environment around us is constantly changing but especially in the last few years, there have been successive events that have brought major changes to society and the global environment. These include increasingly severe natural disasters due to climate change, growing human rights risks, the COVID-19 pandemic and its normalization, as well as social divisions. In response to these global social issues, in 2020 Sony established the USD 100 million Sony Global Relief Fund for COVID-19. And the USD 100 million Global Social Justice Fund to provide various forms of support. Through the Sony Global Relief Fund for COVID-19, Sony has provided support to those affected by COVID-19 in 3 areas, specifically medical, education and the creative community partnerships with external organizations. We have donated face shields to medical institutions, made donations, including [indiscernible], China and the U.S. and supported over 2,500 individual creators and artists. Through these initiatives and activities, we have supported more than 5,600 organizations globally and approximately 80% of the fund has been pledged or earmarked. It has been about 3.5 years since the COVID-19 outbreak. And, although, many countries and regions have recovered from the state of -- or more apparent during this period. To support efforts to address these global social issues, we announced today that we have entered into partnership with 3 international organizations, UNICEF, UNHCR and Save the Children and will contribute approximately USD 15 million. Specifically, through these partnerships, we will provide support for educational assistance, vocational training and improved mental health initiatives for children and youth around the world, as well as support for forcibly displaced persons to recover from the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic with a focus on improving access to health generally and thus preparing for and preventing future pandemics. Additionally, we will provide cash resistance for children in Japan and support activities such as protecting and improving the resilience of children and youth overseas over the next 3 years. Meanwhile, through the Global Social Justice Fund, we have been supporting organizations that work for social justice and human rights protection as well as promote diversity equity and inclusion around the world. Through a collaborative effort with the Sony Group entertainment companies, the fund has provided support for more than 500 organizations across 9 regions direct investment toward the 4 pillars of work, including civic and community engagement, criminal justice reform, education and the diversity through impact. So please watch this video summarizing the Global Social Justice Fund's 3 years of activities. [Presentation]

Treating all people with dignity and respect is one of Sony's most important codes of Social Justice Fund, various activities related to social justice and DE&I have been launched, both inside and outside the company. Of the USD 100 million initially set aside for this fund, approximately 95% has already been allocated. As a company, that has evolved and grown based on the diversity of area with a long-term perspective as we have also announced today. From here, Mitsu Shippee will talk about initiatives that contribute to an inclusive society with a focus on accessibility.

Hello, everyone. My name is Mitsu Shippee. I would now like to introduce our efforts to contribute to an inclusive society, including efforts to improve accessibility to meet the needs of diverse users and creators and our support for creating a society where diverse people can play an active role. First, let me explain accessibility initiatives. Accessibility is the ability to use products, services and content regardless of age, disability or other personal characteristics, ability or environment. It is said that approximately 1.3 billion people or 1 in 6 people around the world, live was some kind of limitations to disability, age or other factors. With the theme of delivering innovation for an accessible future, Sony is promoting accessibility across the entire group. Sony believes that in pursuing accessibility, it is necessary to understand and consider the needs of such diverse users. By working together with these individuals, we intend to implement inclusive design that incorporates their perspectives into product commercialization processes by fiscal 2025. In addition to users, diverse employees are involved in a program for inclusive design and provide feedback about products and services in the development stage. Employee with various disabilities also participate in this internal monitor program and help improve accessibility. Sony is also a signatory of The Valuable 500, a World Economic Forum initiative focused on the inclusion of people with disabilities. Sony's approach to emphasizing diversity is aligned with the goals of this initiative. And we have been selected as the only iconic leader in Japan from among the 500 signatory companies. Through this initiative, we are working together with other organizations and companies to promote disability inclusion. Here is a 7-minute video summarizing the accessibility initiatives in the Entertainment Technology & Services segment, as well as the message from Caroline Casey, founder of The Valuable 500.

Hi, everyone. I am [indiscernible], Executive Deputy President of Sony Corporation. We in the entertainment technology and services business are committed to creating future entertainment together with diverse creators based on our vision, continue to deliver Kando and answer to people and society around the world through the pursuit of technology and new challenges. To this end, we aim to continue our contribution through technology to enhancing the accessibility of our products and services so that more people can exercise their creativity with them. In the last fiscal year, we launched an inclusive design employee training program to increase each employees' awareness of accessibility. Currently, more than 1,000 employees taken the course. This fiscal year, we also plan to conduct training programs for our new employees in cooperation with Sony/Taiyo Corporation, where employees with disabilities are taking an active role. In addition, we are developing a commercialization process that aims to incorporate the needs of those who require alternative accessibility features into products development for a wide range of products in the Entertainment Technology & Services segment by the fiscal year 2025. And we will continue to listen to the opinions of our many customers as we continue our efforts.

Next, Kojima-san will introduce a few accessibility features of cameras.

Hello. I'm Masaaki Kojima, the Head of Imaging Entertainment Business Unit of Sony Corporation. Today, I would like to introduce you to our accessibility initiatives for cameras. We at the Imaging Entertainment business unit aim to provide all global photographers with products and services that offer enjoyable shooting experiences. We now have the new full-frame mirrorless camera, Alpha 7C II announced on August 29. This newly released Alpha 7C II has a variety of accessibility features. First, let me introduce you to the screen reader feature. This function was first introduced to the camera industry by Sony with the North American model of the Alpha 7 IV in 2021. This function assists customers with visual impairments in operating the camera by reading menus and video playback screens aloud, like this. This feature is currently available in [indiscernible] in Japan and overseas. Next, I will introduce the menu screen magnification function, which is new to this model. This function enlarges entire menu screen by 1.5x, 2x or 2.5x for customers who have difficult seeing the LCD screen. We also launched the world's first retina projection camera kit in Japan and the U.S. as an effort to reach out to people who have low vision for any reason and have difficulty seeing in their daily lives, even when using glasses or contact lenses with the hope of creating as many opportunities as possible for everyone to exercise their creativity. This camera kit combines our Sony's Cybershot DSC HX99 digital still camera and a RETISSA NEOVIEWER viewfinder from QD Laser Inc, that projects a laser onto the retina that is very weak and does not affect the eye. Through this camera kit, we had the opportunity to witness many peoples' inspiring moments. Caroline Casey, founder of The Valuable 500 is one of them.

My name is Caroline Casey and I am the founder of The Valuable 500. I'm a person with a vision impairment myself and I'm also President of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness. I gave up using a camera in favor of a smartphone years ago, as I found it just too difficult to use the viewfinder. But with Sony's retina projection camera kit, I see the world that I haven't been able to see for so long and it's made me feel that I want to start shooting with a camera again. I think this camera kit will be particularly attractive not only to those who are born with a visual impairment like me, including children but also those who are losing their sight later in life. It is wonderful that children will be able to see the world and the beauty in it so clearly in a way I was not. I have such high expectations for Sony as an iconic leader in The Valuable 500 to help us achieve an inclusive society through inclusive business and inclusive innovation.

Thank you very much, Caroline. We are already working to make this retina projection camera kit reach as many people as possible and have initiated efforts to make it available to students in schools for the blind. Some schools for the blind have even established photography classes since receiving the kit. We will continue to deliver Kando and answer to people in totality across the world through the pursuit of technology and new challenges so that everyone can become a creator of the future and we can deliver the joy of photography to as many people as possible.

The products introduced in the video, including the Alpha and retinal production camera kit are on display here at the meeting venue. So I encourage everyone in attendance to try them. The Sony Entertainment Technology Showcase Los Angeles, an event for entertainment and technology employees and creators was held in August in the U.S. and one of the themes was, technology for accessibility. By promoting global collaboration with internal and external creative communities as well as tech communities, we are aiming to further contribute to accessibility. Now, here is a video summarizing the accessibility efforts in the Game & Network Services segment from 3 perspectives: console platform, games and accessories. [Presentation]

As you can see, the passion of our employees is the driving force behind the accessibility of our products, which embodies the Sony Group's corporate direction of getting closer to people. Through addressing the diverse needs of creators and users in pursuit of accessibility, we can create products, services and content that can be used regardless of individual characteristics, abilities or environment, such as age or disability. Also, we believe that our accessibility initiatives cannot only benefit these groups but also make things easier to use for many people providing new value and contributing to building an inclusive society. Next, I will explain our efforts to support the creation of an inclusive society. Masaru Ibuka one of the founders of Sony, touted the importance of diversity, saying "Innovation comes out of the collision between the ordinary and extraordinary." We are aiming to realize an inclusive workplace and society where people with diverse values and backgrounds can play an active role in addition to evolving the diversity of our internal human resources, we are promoting initiatives according to business and regional characteristics. For example, in our North American-based entertainment business, we are actively creating opportunities to help students from all backgrounds enter the film, music and video game industries. As one of its new initiatives, Sony Music Group launched the Sony Music Group Global Scholars Program last year, which aims to nurture the next generation of leaders in the music industry and announced support for 50 student scholarships globally. Sony Interactive Entertainment established the PlayStation Career Pathways program in 2021, providing scholarships, mentoring and career readiness support to black and indigenous college students seeking career opportunities in the gaming industry. Sony Pictures Entertainment's Diverse Directors Program, which aims to support emerging creators aspiring to become television and film directors, is now in its 9th year. Through these activities, we are working to contribute to society and strengthen the pipeline for ensuring diversity in each industry in the future. These initiatives also utilize the Global Social Justice Fund introduced earlier. In Japan, where the gender gap is a social issue, we are working contribute to society through university-enterprise partnership with the aim of supporting the development and growth of female engineers from an early stage with a mid- to long-term perspective. Last year, we began a partnership with Nara Women's University Faculty of Engineering. And in connection with this partnership, we held workshops on AI and programming in August, as part of our female engineers training program for junior high school through university students. In parallel with such initiatives, the Sony Group endeavors to create a work environment that enables employees to build their careers regardless of disabilities they may have. Most of their individuality and skills at Sony/Taiyo Corporation, which engages in the high-quality manufacturing such as of high-end headphones and microphones that have received good reviews from artists and Sony Kibou/Hikari Corporation, which works closely with Sony's operating companies to develop AI functions. We are leveraging these initiatives in the employment of persons with disabilities at the entire group to enhance accessibility within its facilities and foster an inclusive work environment. We will continue to respect diverse values and contribute to an inclusive society.

Next, I will talk about the progress of our environmental initiatives. Sony promotes environmental initiatives along 2 axes, responsibility and contribution. The long-term environment plan, Road to Zero, announced in 2010, can be said to symbolize responsibility. With Road to Zero, we have been promoting these initiatives from 4 perspectives, climate change, resources, chemical substances and biodiversity to achieve a 0 environment footprint by 2050. And we broadcast the target year for achievement and set medium-term goals every 5 years to work on reducing our environmental impact. And given that responding to climate change has become a particularly urgent issue among the 4 perspectives, last year, we announced that we would bring forward our goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emission by 10 years to 2040. As of the end of fiscal 2022, the current medium-term environmental targets, Green Management 2025, are on track for approximately 60% of the items. The Sony Group's total GHG emissions for Scope 1 through 3 last fiscal year were approximately 21.42 million tons, the largest portion of which, accounting for 55%, was due to energy consumption of Sony products in Scope 3. We are continuously striving to reduce product energy consumption. For example, in 4K LCD television, by fiscal 2022 we had reduced annual energy consumption per product unit by approximately 55% as compared to fiscal 2013 levels. For the annual energy consumption per product unit, GM2025 sets the goal of reducing a further 5% compared to fiscal 2018. The increasing size, higher performance and multifunctionality of our products have led to an approximate 3.9% increase in the previous fiscal year. Going forward, we will aim to achieve our target by applying technologies to curb energy consumption during product use to even more product models. A key to reducing Scope 2 emissions is the implementation of renewable energy at Sony Group sites. We have set a goal to make renewable electricity account for over 35% of power by fiscal 2025. We were working to install solar power systems, purchase renewable electricity from power utilities and utilize renewable energy certificates. Last year, the rate of renewable electricity at the Sony Group doubled to 29.7% from 14.6% in fiscal 2021. We are making steady progress towards the goal of 100% renewable energy by 2030. Especially in the Imaging & Sensing Solutions segment, which uses a lot of energy, we are planning to expand the installation of solar panels at our site in Thailand. Furthermore, in Japan, continuing from the previous fiscal year, a new virtual PPA was signed in August. GHG emissions in the supply chain fall under Scope 3 and understanding and reducing these emissions remains a major challenge for many global companies. We recognize that to achieve our net zero target in 2040, it is essential to reduce suppliers' emissions to achieve our goal and are addressing this issue with a long-term perspective. We are first aiming to realize net zero Scope 2 emissions, which arise from use of purchased power at supplier sites by 2030 for our major suppliers. To achieve this target, we have started to request the suppliers set medium- and long-term targets for understanding and reducing GHG emissions. To encourage this, we offer assistance in setting the targets as well as managing progress towards those targets. Through our Partner Eco Challenge Program, which we started in the last fiscal year, Sony personnel who are well versed in Sony's environmental initiatives and energy management at our factories, visit suppliers to share expertise of Sony's energy saving activities. We plan to further promote this program in the future, including in China. In addition, we encourage the use of renewable energy and provide support for setting and obtaining approval for goals equivalent to Science Based Targets, as well as for the procurement of renewable energy. We plan to provide support, such as educational courses on climate change. Given the importance of the circular economy, Sony is also promoting resource recycling initiatives. One such initiative is reducing single-use plastic packaging. The individual cartons for the products shown here are made with Original Blended Material, a recycled material developed by Sony. In the ET&S and G&NS segments, in the last fiscal year, we eliminated plastic packaging materials for 36 new product models. Taking this initiative further in the ET&S segment, we expect to achieve complete elimination of plastic packaging materials for newly designed small products within this fiscal year. Lastly, I would like to introduce the progress of our corporate venture capital, Sony Innovation Fund Environment, as an example of contribution. It was established in 2020 to support venture initiatives that are employing new environmental technologies in addition to Sony's own technology development. The fund started at JPY 1 billion scale and has invested approximately JPY 300 million in the companies shown here to date. These are start-up companies that are developing technologies that align with the 4 environmental perspectives that Sony is focusing on as part of its Road to Zero initiative, which include biodiversity, water resources, biomass plastics, as well as climate change and energy. For example, one of the investee companies, Cruz Foam, extracts chitin, a polymer from crustacean shell waste such as shrimp shells and develops biomass packaging materials to replace polystyrene foam. We have started verification in the United States to determine if this packaging material can be used for Sony products. We will continue to discover, invest in and support start-ups from a long-term perspective, aiming to both contribute to the global environment and achieve a return on investment. Today, we talked about the social significance of Kando, the initiatives addressing global social solutions, our efforts to contribute to an inclusive society such as in the area of accessibility and the initiatives addressing environmental issues. In these areas, new initiatives are being undertaken autonomously in each of our businesses. One of our focuses over the past few years has been to integrate sustainability into our business strategy and in particular, to infuse sustainability into the activities of each of our businesses. I hope that the examples and videos presented today have demonstrated that each business segment analyzes its own sustainable challenges and opportunities and implements initiatives that are tailored to the characteristics of each business. There are many other topics that I have not been able to cover due to time constraints. However, please refer to the corporate report and the sustainability report for more detailed information. Sony intends to continue strengthening its sustainability initiatives by emphasizing information disclosure and dialogue with its diverse stakeholders. Thank you very much.

This has completed all the presentations for today. Now, at 10:50 we will have to entertain questions from the media. And 11:10, we will have this Q&A session for the investors and analysts. And it will be about 20 minutes each for each session of Q&A. [Operator Instructions] So please wait for a few minutes before we start the session for Q&A. Soon we will start the Q&A session for the media reporters. Please wait for a few minutes. Thank you. Thank you very much for waiting. We'd now like to entertain questions from the media.

Those who will respond is the senior management, Executive Vice President Kambe; and Senior General Manager Shippee, of the sustainability promotion department; and General Manager, Shiga. Those 3 will respond to your questions. [Operator Instructions] And please limit your question to 2 questions per person. Thank you for your kind understanding. Now we would like to entertain your questions. Thank you. The person with a white shirt in the first row in the front, in the center.

I'm [ Nakajima of Kyoto ] [indiscernible]. Mr. Kambe, at the end you mentioned that for the start-up companies that you would like to explore them and assist them then by investment. So as for your investees, how do you select your investees? That's my first question. And per company, what is the rough figure of the investment limit per company? Then how many companies do you intend to invest in the future? Do you have any scenario for that? And also, the investment by you is for the social contribution that you keep in mind. But what about the return on investment, are you also thinking about the potential return on investment?

As I explained about the Sony Innovation Fund and the environment-related investment activity, so let me respond to this question myself. In your presentation -- in my presentation, I mentioned that this Sony Innovation Fund: Environment. 2020, this fund was established, SIF: E. So this environment technology is the focus because Road to Zero has 4 initiatives -- perspectives like climate change and then the resources, chemical substance and then biodiversity. So any technology that could contribute to these 4 areas are chosen as a venture company and then our environment team as well as the corporate venture capital, the teams work together and we have a joint team. And then globally, we look for those contributing companies as a potential investees. In the early stage, venture companies, the focal points for us to -- for us to consider investment. And then the fund itself is about JPY 1 billion scale at starting point. For the company, it's not a big investment. JPY 300 million has been already invested. The corporate venture capital is a subject, there are 2 perspectives. One, is that they should contribute to the social environment enhancement and for the -- it should also contribute in the long term to this reduction of the environment burden of Sony. As for the return on ROI, something we'd like to also pursue, those are 2 aspects that we'd like to strike a balance and achieve those 2 goals at the same time. In the normal, the funding, there's the other fund compared to normal fund activities. Much longer term perspective is considered for getting the return on investment because it's a brand-new, environment-related technology to start it up and then the return is eventually made. It will take more time for this kind of a brand-new technology. So we will review those candidate companies based upon that kind of standpoint.

Next question. It will be a participant from online. [indiscernible] please.

[indiscernible] I wonder if you can hear me. I have 2 questions. First of all, about power -- electric power and so nuclear power generation is being promoted by the government and this reoperation. And you have the policy to increase renewable energy. So how do you position nuclear power?

Perhaps you should ask the second question.

About environment, PFAS. I think that is a big issue recently, fluoride substance. And it is essential for use but you have exposure in Kumamoto because high concentration in PFAS can be seen. And I think some concern is being raised. So in the Sony Group, how have you used this? And how are you going to deal with this going forward? Those are my 2 questions.

First has to do with renewable energy being increased and what is the view towards nuclear power generation. Second has to do with the fluoride substances, compounds, especially in the semiconductor manufacturing process. First, I will answer and then Shiga, in charge of environment will give you an answer. Now first of all, Sony itself, Road to Zero program. By 2030, our power consumption is going to be renewable energy completely. And then this is renewable energy. So nuclear power generation is not included. And therefore, in Sony's current program, nuclear power generation is not included and we want to have 100% renewable energy. Of course, inclusive of Japan and depending on country, how is power supply to be stabilized, I believe that is a major challenge and with regards to nuclear power generation strength and weaknesses, that's another big issue and we are going to follow the discussions around this. Shiga-san, please.

Second question is about PFAS and in the semiconductor manufacturing process, how is it used? And how are we going to respond? That was the question received. And yes, in the semiconductor manufacturing, there are various compounds, which include PFAS. That's my understanding. And in the manufacturing process, we are making reductions and we want to accelerate such an effort. And we are studying how to respond to the regulation. That's my answer.

We'd now like to go on to the next -- the press, to ask a question. To the right, the second row and then the person wearing the black jacket, please.

I'm [indiscernible]. I have also the question about this -- the environment-related initiatives. First is that the [ GX ] is the new trend in the world and -- but in 2020, you started this activity, 3 companies in the last 3 years. But of course, investing in those companies by SIF:E but it took 6 companies chosen in 3 years. How do you validate this -- speed of this investment? The second then, how do you identify and detect the greenwash problem? How do you think of that? In your investment, how do you choose the proper industries so that you would avoid any greenwashing type company from your investment list?

About the SIF:E's progress to-date, well, how do you detect this -- the greenwashing type company. Well, actually, there's, especially 2 points Shiga might add. And so I will respond to the first part of the question. First is, in the last 3 years, we invested in 6 companies in total, yes. But in that process probably 5x or 6x more candidates were scrutinized, ventures, as well as venture businesses. So we reviewed all these candidates long list and then considered them and reviewed them. So 6 companies became investees in 3 years, so that we do not think that was too smaller list but rather, actually, the actual investees, how they will actually develop the new technology and then we will support them and make use of their technology. That's a more important part in our evaluation. Especially our environment initiatives is urgent [indiscernible], especially our environment initiatives is urgent matter, we have to take up. But we have to have a long-term view in that kind of activity, which is very important long-term view. 2010, the Road to zero was announced. At that time, 2050, the timetable was set, that is the long-term view. And then backcasting was applied. And then 2030, 2040, reset the goals and we have advanced implementation plan than the original plan, especially new technology will make contribution to expedite. And then we will continue to have a long-term viewpoint in this kind of investment and other activities.

I would like to add to how do you investigate and then green washing potential with these potential investees. Let me answer, greenwashing is the issue in Europe and U.S. and then new regulations being implemented and I'm sure it's a focus of your attention. About the SIF:E investees, there is a financial funding and the knowledge and this SIF:E office is in charge of checking. And I am also involved as the environment team. Who are the candidate investees and their content, technology is what and so on. We review thoroughly and eventually choose the investees. Their technology, how -- to what extent it could be applied and used -- become useful, the internal knowledge will be applied for our scrutiny and evaluation. Sony Innovation Fund itself through the major indices who based upon the ESG standpoint, the scoring is done. So that's how we prepare and check.

Going to the next question. And in the middle third row, person with the white shirt, please?

Nikkei Business, my name is [indiscernible] and I would like to ask about the [ CVC ] too. So with regards to Road to Zero, the SIF:E role is very big. And compared to your other funds, JPY 1 billion of size is quite small. And so I want to ask 2 questions in connection with that. So JPY 1 billion, what is the reason for that? It's kind of waiting and seeing. And going forward, are you going to have the second fund initiated?

Thank you very much for the questions. First of all, I need to make clear [ CVC ] or SIF:E is not necessarily for materializing Road to Zero. And at the outset, as I mentioned, Sony has environmental initiatives. And it is due to responsibility as a company and if possible, we want to contribute to society. That is the 2 axes. And symbolizing responsibility, we have the Road to Zero and Sony itself, our business activities or what we are providing to the world in terms of products and content and services, the environmental burden of them has to be reduced, so that ultimately it could be net zero. And of course, to realize that we ourself look at technology and other companies' technology, too. And as explained earlier, 2050 or 2040 being the target, we backcast in every 5 years, we bring our funds into [indiscernible]. Now SIF:E, that is a bit long term to look at society as a whole and what we can contribute in terms of the environment. So as part of those efforts, we engaged in this. And therefore, the perspective is long term and it could be as a first effort might be viewed as small scale. Of course, in the future, this might expand. If it does, then the second or third fund, those possibilities will be studied.

Time is running short. So the next speaker will be the last one to ask a question. In the second row, maybe this person in the fourth section and the person wearing a black jacket. Yes.

[ Kato of TV Tokyo ]. I have a question to Mr. Kambe. Today, you talked about sustainability as the main theme throughout this presentation. Of course, that includes the respect for human rights. Sony Music label includes this [ Chinese and associate ] the office. What is the future business contact and relationship do you think you will keep with the [ Chinese associates ] because the sexual assault problem has been the scandal towards Sony. What kind of reaction is coming from the parties at large to Sony with regard to your relation with the Chinese and the [ associates ] company.

The human rights and also our relation with the Chinese and [ associates ] companies, of course, human rights must be respected. That is Sony's most important crucial code of conduct value, especially when you conduct business, there are all kinds of stakeholders you have a chance to get to be in touch. And then you have to restrict the human rights there, especially we are doing entertainment business, which is our core business as well and creators and artists for the Sony Group are the most important partners. And Sony, creators and artists, should be -- Sony should be loved by creators and artists and we would like to stay that kind of loved brand in the future as well. We talked about the global fund, which has different activities. One is to protect the human rights of creators and the mind and the psychological care must be given the due respect for creators, both domestic as well as overseas as well. That we -- the social compliance and then human rights protection and then the social compliance is very important. As the Chinese and [ associate ] company yesterday, announcement is made because the company would like to start the activity to prevent the recurrence of problem and give the compensation to the victims. And we expect that the company will implement that. And then we'd like to closely monitor how the company will respond to and then save all those victims.

Our time is up. And therefore, we will close the Q&A by media. And now, next, we will conduct the Q&A session for investors and analysts.

Thank you for your patience. We will now start the Q&A session from investors and analysts. I will act as the moderator. I'm [indiscernible] from [ IR Group of Finance ]. [Operator Instructions]. In the first row, right block.

My name is [ Hirakawa ]. And you talked about sustainability being incorporated into corporate strategy. So I'd like to ask about that. So today, you talked about accessibility. And I think that is a wonderful social contribution and I was able to understand that. But on the short term the employees, well, they will not be accustomed to it and they will -- this will incur costs. So there are some negative aspects too, I would think. And to an extent, I think it will have to be promoted top down. So what are the incentives that you provide to the employees so that the sustainability will become more pervasive inside the company?

This is about accessibility and sustainability, how it can spread within the company, what kind of incentive are there and what are our initiatives. Now first of all, Shippee-san is going to speak, and then I will also add some comments.

And on the part of Sony, we have purpose and sustainability that we engage in and to realize our purpose, we have the assumption that it's a society that you can feel secure in and you have a healthy global environment. So in the area of sustainability, what Sony can contribute is specified and promoted. Now what we explained today is about accessibility and Sony respects diversity and we want to continue like that. And I believe that it's a very important factor. Accessibility initiatives to be a cost or an extra process, so that the people don't think in that way, we do enlighten our employees and also in the product commercialization process, we incorporate that. And in our presentation too, as we introduced vis-a-vis employees and also there is training for management, too. And with that, we try to create the mindset and through a certain process. Sony has the diverse culture, diverse talent, has that kind of organizational culture, I think, can be nurtured, if I may add.

So for about 6 years, we have put purpose in the center in our activities. And more than management expects actually employee side with regards to accessibility and inclusive design. And as we explained today, as you see with the global fund, to contribute to society. They do have empathy and they are proactively participating. I can feel that quite strongly. With regards to accessibility, for example, regardless of disability, to think about these matters actually will make Sony products more easy to use and improve its functionality. I think although this is a gradual process within our group and within all the companies, I think that this kind of thinking is spreading. That's all.

We'd like to now entertain the next question. Second row, the person wearing a grey jacket, please.

I am Ayada of JPMorgan. I have 2 questions. The first question is that in your presentation, you told about inclusive design. And by 2025, that it will be commercialized. However, in the future, to what extent would that be the percent of that kind of a product? And then these kind of a new design products in the future will increase as a category. So how you would like to evaluate the progress and track this outcome? Do you have any criteria that you can share? And the second part of my question is that in this sustainability is to be integrated into your business strategy as Mr. Kambe mentioned. But in the past in different fora, you have presented many ways. And then compared to other companies, your company seems to be ahead with progress. From Mr. Kambe's standpoint, what is the area where you think you are still lagging behind? Or there, that's still the challenging area that you still like to improve. Could you please tell us that area. In the last 1 year, of course, as the Generative AI has advanced but people have raised expectations, especially in the stock market. But what will be the contribution, the impact by AI to Road to Zero for your sustainability strategy? What will be impact by AI? If you can think of any, please tell us.

The first question is about our inclusive design and accessibility for 2025. How the new programs will be tracked, outcome will be validated. Shippee will comment on that part of the question. And as for the second part of your question, sustainability to be integrated in our management business. What are the challenges? And how do we value contribution by AI or what is the philosophy about AI? So as to the second question, I will comment and respond myself.

As to the inclusive design that we talked about, of course, in 2025, the entire Sony group that we are promoting that. So inclusive of, all the products will have that kind of process integrated. That's our aim. As for the inclusive design, depending upon the age of the user or the physical condition or the environment, regardless of those conditions, many products and services and content should be inclusive enough to be utilized by as many people as possible so that they can all enjoy. So that for the stakeholders, we'd like to listen to the voices and put that into this design phase and development phase of our products. So this is accessibility inclusive design, how we promote that because each business and business unit, the -- we have the person responsible for inclusive design promotion, what are the criteria index and what kind of a type of design should be the aim. So each division of the business is considering. As for the progress to-date, we have some indicator and then the responsible person would report to us regularly. So that's our system and setup. So we like, as many people as possible to know about the initiative so we would like to continue to have the enhanced communication by our website.

And so let me respond to the second question. The sustainability initiative, as of now, what are the issues and some of the points or bottlenecks that we have not really achieved so far. There are lots of issues still. At the meeting last year, we talked about the [indiscernible] analysis. 4 areas were identified as important focus area for Sony and for our initiative. And for us, when we implement our business activities, we have lots of changes we face, social environment is changing and then so forth. So in that sense, the new challenges and problems arise, for example, AI is one of the challenge. Social division, divide is another issue, how to cope with that social divide in Sony is another issue we face. Specifically, for example, in the area of the environment, the Road to Zero is steadily progressing in our initiatives as I mentioned today. The Scope 3 might be the issue, the challenge. Most of the global corporations face that as a issue, is scope 3, is that the indirect activities, the GHG emission, how can we [indiscernible] that? And all the relevant parties and then our business partners should be encouraged to be engaged in that too. So that we have to make steady efforts for us as there are, the social efforts are necessary and we should make contribution to that enhancement of the efforts in human rights. And society issues, DE&I is one area, for example, in Japan, the women empowerment is very important in Japan as well. This year, a new DE&I officer is -- was assigned within our company, very actively, we have a long-term view to promote that. But that area still has a room for improvement, as do AI. We are entertainment company as well, so AI will bring about benefits and improvement and convenience and so forth of our businesses, that's clear merit. As the technology advances, we ourselves has to deal with AI properly and then we would like to make use of AI technology. But at the same time, it's a brand new technology, new issues, social problems are generated by the new technology. For 77 years of Sony Group since foundation, so far, the new technology development, versus social issues, we always faced with that issue and sincerely dealt with that. So we should be responsible. We have to make use of AI with responsibility and accountability, that is a issue that we are sincerely dealing with. AI Ethics Committee was established for some time and then lots of social issues are discussed in that committee and our own decisions were made at that committee as well. But world is changing quickly and technology is changing as well. Everyday, we ourselves have to keep learning. That's my feeling about AI.

Next is the online participant from Morgan Stanley and you have [indiscernible] securities, Ono-san please.

Ono from Morgan Stanley. And I think this is a fundamental kind of question. From the equity market, we are analyzing your company. And the corporate value profit is the assumption. And I want to ask 2 questions. So you have to make profits that makes corporation sustainable and it's reflected in the stock price. And with profit, various Kando contents can be developed, and you can support society and invest in Road to Zero and also product development that raises accessibility will be possible. So I think that will be the good cycle. And I understand that and what is the discussion in-house on 2 aspects? This is my question.

First is, yes, it's true. As Shippee-san explained, various accessibility is going to be added to products and services so that many people will be able to use those products and services. But on the other hand, Sony's services and products, relatively speaking, are expensive because it's kind of a premium and it's also leads to brand sustainability. So price obstacle -- price barrier being those prices very high. So the number of people who can actually use products or services may be limited. And so in the interface, maybe third party could also be involved.

I wonder if that kind of discussion is taking place internally. Second question is, there are people with various disabilities and they may participate as creators and also coming to contact with Sony products, which I think is wonderful. And in addition, you have the keyword Kando, which you are promoting and in not just physical diversity, there's also the mental diversity to consider. I wonder if you are discussing mental diversity, too. So those are my 2 questions.

And accessibility, sustainability to engage in that and also the financial value of the corporation to raise our profitability, so how should we view these 2 points? I think that is what you are asking. And the -- also second question is, what about the mental diversity, the mental aspects? And I would like to, first of all, answer on that point. As Shippee-san also explained, this time, while there are so many sustainability challenges. And every year, we think about what theme to take up and myself included, management and Shippee-san and Shiga-san, we have discussions. And this time, we looked at accessibility and inclusive design. And we took those up because those areas, well, Sony to be frank, 5 years ago or 10 years ago, we were a bit behind and it was not necessarily a top-notch area for us. But these past few years, well, of course, the PlayStation team had been making efforts from the past, ET&S led by [indiscernible]. They have a lot of activities and to engage in this. People with disabilities, elderly persons, they can also use Sony products extensively and this leads to the customer development and not just disabilities. By learning from these people, our product planning and also the ease of use of our products, we can have a good effect on those aspects. And that, I think that kind of momentum is rising, in ET&S, many employee training. We have a Sony/Taiyo, which is a special subsidiary. And what kind of products or what kind of function are easy to use, we can learn from them and we have those efforts, too. So therefore, While accessibility is one example but we manage on a long-term perspective and have continuous and the sustainable initiatives do not contradict with that, rather by pursuing both, I think both are enhanced. And that is our feeling and our efforts. Also, as you have indicated, in order to have a big social impact as a company, we have to continue to make profits. Otherwise, there will not be a social impact. So that also has to happen. And yes, profits. As Totoki-san says, as a company, we grow with a long-term perspective and that will lead to the creation of social value and it will contribute to the solving of social issues. And about the second aspect, mental diversity. The global -- 2 global funds introduced today, in a sense, artists and creators' mental health are what we are aware of in our initiatives. And this time, we have a new 3 funds and their mental health is viewed as a new social issue and we are going to address them. So I believe that is also our initiative and therefore, we also value that aspect. And Shippee-san would you like to add?

Yes. In the company, if I may add. And as I touched on earlier, we have the special subsidiary called the Sony Kibou/Hikari. And those with mental disabilities are employed and those employees, well, they can participate in the product processes of the other operating companies. So that is what I wanted to add.

So we'd like to entertain the last question from the floor. Just 1 question per person, please. And so please contact us if you have a question. Last question for today's session. Thank you. No one? So with that we would like to conclude today's sustainability meeting. We'd like to conclude today's meeting. Thank you very much.

Around the outside on the second floor, there is exhibition of the accessibility and inclusive design products. So please visit our exhibition, which is on the second floor, in front of this hall. Thank you again for your participation today. [Statements in English on this transcript were spoken by an interpreter present on the live call.]