Sony Corporation announced "USB Audio", a core product lineup which will newly define the AIWA brand. Sony will energetically promote these products which will be progressively launched on a global basis from February 2004.

USB Audio is a new category of portable audio devices that connect via the USB (Universal Serial Bus) port, installed on most PCs as a default. This allows for easy connections without troublesome and complex set-ups. A wide range of audio products that fit the lifestyle of PC users will be introduced including audio players using the USB storage media "Pavit"; an ultra-thin and light card-sized HDD player; and a high quality PC peripheral speaker that fits in the back of a PC display. In USB audio products, PC-user-friendly functions are adopted, for example the high data transmission speed that allows one hour of music data to be transferred in only 18 seconds by connecting to a USB port (USB2.0).

The core customer segment for "USB Audio" is the "digital generation" who use the internet for recreation, carry their music with them and who value their personal time and tastes. To reach the digital generation worldwide, a web-centric marketing campaign centered on the renewed websites "www.aiwa.com" (global portal) and "www.jp.aiwa.com" (Japanese portal) will be implemented.