Sony Music Entertainment is a major global record label controlled by Sony Corporation. A record label is a brand created by companies that specialize in producing, manufacturing, distributing and promoting audio and sometimes video recordings (especially music videos), on various formats including compact discs, LPs, DVD-Audio, SACDs, and cassettes. ... Sony Corporation (Japanese katakana: ソニー) (TYO: 6758), (NYSE: SNE) is a global consumer electronics corporation based in Tokyo, Japan. ...

In 1988 Sony Corporation acquired CBS Records for $2 Billion and renamed the label to Sony Music Entertainment in 1991. CBS retained the rights to the CBS name. 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Sony Corporation (Japanese katakana: ソニー) (TYO: 6758), (NYSE: SNE) is a global consumer electronics corporation based in Tokyo, Japan. ... Columbia Records is the oldest continually used brand name in recorded sound, dating back to 1888. ...

Sony introduced the Columbia label after it bought the international rights of the label from EMI. Epic Records is the other pop branch of Sony Records. The EMI Group is a major record label, based in Hammersmith in London, in the United Kingdom. ... Epic Records is a record label launched originally as a jazz and classical music label in 1953 by CBS. Its bright-yellow, black and blue logo became a familiar trademark for many jazz and classical releases. ...

In August 2004, Sony Music Entertainment created a joint-venture with BMG to form Sony BMG Music Entertainment. August is the eighth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The BMG logo. ... Sony BMG Music Entertainment is the result of a 50/50 joint venture between Sony Music Entertainment (part of Sony) and BMG Entertainment (part of Bertelsmann) completed on August 5, 2004. ...

In November 2005, Texas Attorney General as well as the Electronic Frontier Foundation (a digital rights group based in California) separately filed a civil lawsuit against Sony BMG Music Entertainment for hiding spyware software on its compact discs leaving computers vulnerable to hackers. For other uses, see November (disambiguation). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also

• List of record labels
• 2005 Sony CD copy protection controversy