Sony, the 78-year-old Japanese electronics giant, is the latest legacy megacorp to explore blockchain technology. On Tuesday, the company announced that it is officially launching “Soneum,” a general blockchain platform.
The team behind Sony Block Solutions Labs (SBSL), a joint project between Sony Group and Singapore-based Startale Labs, describes Soneuim – technically a layer-2 network on top of Ethereum – as “a versatile general-purpose blockchain platform” built to support a diverse ecosystem of gaming, financial and entertainment apps. According to SBSL, the launch comes after a four-month test period that involved participation from 14 million wallets.
Sony’s network is yet more proof that traditional tech companies may once again be keen on blockchain’s ability to connect and commercialize the media of the future. The chain aims “to bridge the gap between web2 and web3 audiences, especially for the creators, fans and community,” SBSL said in a statement shared with CoinDesk. “The platform prioritizes user-centered design, simplifies blockchain interactions, and evolves web3 from a niche hobby to an everyday experience.”
The team used Optimism’s OP Stack to build out their network – a customizable framework that lets developers use optimistic rollup technology to trade Ethereum quickly and at a low cost.
Other companies using OP Stack include US crypto exchanges Coinbase and Kraken, which use the technology to power their popular Base and Ink networks. Uniswap, the leading decentralized exchange, and Worldcoin, the Sam Altman-founded digital passport, also use OP Stack to power their layer-2 blockchain networks.
In many cases, the Optimismefonden, which handles the development of the OP stack, has given grants to companies that have agreed to use its technology. SBSL declined to comment on how many OP tokens it would receive as part of this deal, although previous reporting indicates that Optimism’s contribution could be significant.
In August 2023, Coinbase received up to 118 million OP tokens – worth $182 million at the time, or $192 million at today’s prices – to use the OP Stack for Base chain. CoinDesk also reported that Kraken received up to 25 million OP tokens, worth about $100 million, when they agreed to use the OP stack in January 2024 (now worth $42 million).
Similar grants are awarded by Optimism competitors such as Polygon and Arbitrum, each dueling to build its own interconnected network of blockchains.
Read more: Sony, Electronics Pioneer Behind Walkman, Starts Own Blockchain ‘Soneium’
