Sony Unveils Battery Exchange Program Details

Distressed with the massive global battery recalls, Sony Corporation on Tuesday came up with an announcement that the problems caused by the laptop batteries have been fixed and at the same time apologized for the worries and inconveniences faced by the users. Besides, Sony also said none of the company's top leaders would step down over the recall.

In a news conference at a Tokyo hotel, slenderly bowing with two other executives, Yutaka Nakagawa, executive deputy president, Sony Corporation said, "We would like to take this opportunity to apologize for the worries." He further added, “For those customers and PC users who may have been affected by the recent issues involving Sony-manufactured batteries, we regret any inconvenience or concern this may have caused.”

Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, the world's largest media conglomerates, Sony said improvements in production, design and inspection have been made to forbid a return of any laptop overheating problems. Company officials said the problems were caused by microscopic metal particles that erroneously got inside the battery, causing short-circuiting.

As a step of a move to eliminate the problem, Sony on Sept. 28 had announced the global voluntary replacement program for certain notebook computer battery packs using Sony-manufactured lithium ion battery cells. At the time, Sony said that nearly 9.6 million lithium-ion batteries are being recalled worldwide after getting reports of some computers using the Sony battery packs overheating and catching fire.

Today, the company unveiled the details of the replacement program. Sony informed that the program is being implemented in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and other regulatory agencies worldwide.

“We are confident that our voluntary global battery replacement program will address any remaining concerns or needs of our customers and consumers,” Nakagawa said.

The details of the program are as follows:

Affected Battery Packs: Battery packs in specific notebook computers containing certain battery cells (2.4Ah, 2.6Ah) manufactured by Sony during the period from August 2003 to February 2006.

Number of Units Covered: Approx. 3.5 mil units (not including packs previously recalled by Dell, Apple Computer and Lenovo).

Replacement Process: Specific replacement programs' starting periods and procedures for consumers have been or soon will be announced by each of the participating PC manufacturers.

Battery Disposal: Sony will dispose of the returned battery packs collected by the PC manufacturers.

Meanwhile, the multinational corporation said that its top management, including Chief Executive Howard Stringer and President Ryoji Chubachi, would retain their respective positions at the company and make the successful completion of the recall as a first concern. There would be no move to drop or cut short the production of company's laptop battery, Sony said.

The total cost estimate of Sony for its replacement program, including costs associated with the Dell, Apple Computer and Lenovo recalls, is expected to be US$427 million. This estimate is based on the total potential of up to 9.6 million battery packs being covered.

United States computer maker Gateway is the latest company in the series of battery recalls. On Tuesday, the company announced a recall of 35,000 laptop batteries made by the Japanese electronics giant. "Under very rare circumstances, these batteries can overheat and create a potential fire hazard," Gateway Inc stated on its web site.