November 28, 2005 Source: University of Alberta:
http://www.expressnews.ualberta.ca/newsreleases.cfm?id=7141 Sony donates to the Prince Takamado Japan Canada Memorial Fund Sony of Canada Ltd., Canada's leading electronic and computer products solutions provider for consumers and business, today announced that its parent, Sony Corporation, is the first donor to the Prince Takamado Japan Canada Memorial Fund, which is held at the University of Alberta. An international fundraising project is underway to establish the memorial fund and is being assisted by an international advisory and fund raising committees involving a number of leading Japanese and Canadian business and community leaders, including the Chief Corporate Advisor, the former chairman of Sony Corporation, Mr. Nobuyuki Idei. Sony has donated video conferencing equipment valued at more than $125,000 to connect the Prince Takamado Japan Centre and the Centre's planned Canadian Network for Japan Studies (CANJAS) at the University of Alberta to Japan Studies programs at other Canadian universities including British Columbia, Victoria, Toronto and Calgary. The inaugural video conference takes place today at the U of A. It will feature a lecture by Professor Seiichi Makino of Princton University on "The Japanese Pluralizer - Tachi as a window into the cognitive world." The University of Alberta is home to the Prince Takamado Japan Centre for Teaching and Research, a joint centre between the Faculties of Arts and Education. Named in honour of the late Prince Takamado, long time friend of Canada and advocate for Japan Canada relations, the centre's mandate is to promote excellence in the teaching of Japanese language and culture. Her Imperial Highness, Princess Takamado officially named the centre last year. A top priority for the Prince Takamado Centre is to establish the Canadian Network for Japanese Studies (CANJAS) with strong links between Canadian programs of Japanese studies, and to leading Japanese universities. "Sony is pleased to partner with the University of Alberta to promote excellence in Japanese studies and to foster stronger links between Japan and Canada," says Sony Canada Executive Vice-President, Anil Sethi. University of Alberta President, Dr. Indira Samarasekera says the university is honoured to house the centre. "We are committed to supporting student exchanges between Canada and Japan in addition to academic and industry partnerships. This gift from Sony will significantly enhance Japanese studies here and across Canada," said Dr. Samarasekera. About The Broadcast Communication Solutions Group
The Broadcast Communication Solutions (BCS) Group is a division of Sony of Canada Ltd., headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. BCS Group markets and supports Sony's full range of broadcast, professional video and audio equipment, including high definition video, interactive and security applications for the broadcast, production, business, industry, government, medical and education sectors through a network of authorized systems integrators. About Sony of Canada Ltd. Established in 1955, Sony of Canada Ltd. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation of Tokyo, Japan, a world leader in the manufacture and marketing of electronic and computer products for consumer, business, electronics publishing and multimedia applications on a global scale. With headquarters in Toronto, sales offices in Vancouver and Montreal and distribution centres in Coquitlam, British Columbia, and Whitby, Ontario, approximately 970 employees support 72 Sony stores and a network of more than 3,000 authorized dealers across Canada. About the University of Alberta
The University of Alberta in Edmonton is one of Canada's premier teaching and research universities serving more than 35,000 students by some 8,000 faculty and staff. It is recognized internationally for advanced research in many areas including diabetes, nanotechnology, environmental engineering, computing science and for its study of English literature. Please visit us at www.ualberta.ca For further information, please visit us at www.sony.ca, www.thesonystore.ca, www.sonybiz.ca or www.sonystyle.ca, Sony's product information and e-commerce Web site, or contact: John B. Challinor II APR Michelle Cowan General Manager, Advertising Counsellor & Corporate Communications Technology Practice Sony of Canada Ltd. Silverhammer Public Relations 416-495-3740 416-324-2024 john_challinor@sony.ca michelle_cowan@silver-hammer.com For further information contact File No: 39 Sandra L. Halme November 25, 2005 Associate Director University of Alberta 780-492-0442 sandra.halme@ualberta.ca
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