When Sony announced last month that it intended to pass control of its home entertainment division, including the Bravia television brand, to the Chinese group TCL Electronics, it came as a shock. How could Sony, famed for its sleek, expensive devices, play second fiddle to a Chinese brand?
上月，索尼宣布拟将其家庭娱乐业务（包括Bravia电视品牌）的控制权转给中国集团TCL电子(TCL Electronics)，这一消息令人震惊。以设备设计精良、价格高昂著称的索尼，怎会甘居一家中国品牌之后？
The question can be asked the other way round: when did TCL, which was founded 45 years ago as an audio tape manufacturer in Guangdong province, turn into a credible joint venture partner for Sony? Along with Hisense, it has established a pretty good reputation for making budget LCD televisions, but Bravia’s high-end halo has been in place for two decades.
反过来，也可以提出这样的问题：45年前创立，最初只是广东省一家录音磁带制造商的TCL，是什么时候转变为索尼的可信合资伙伴的？与海信(Hisense)一样，TCL在制造价格亲民的液晶(LCD)电视方面已经建立起相当不错的声誉，但Bravia的高端光环已有二十年之久。
The answer lies in the longevity of reputations. It takes time to build brands and perception often outlives business reality. Sony still produces high-quality televisions, but it no longer makes key parts itself. It was long ago overtaken in sales by South Korea’s Samsung and LG, and now has only 2 per cent of the global market.
答案在于声誉的持久性。打造品牌需要时间，而市场认知往往比商业现实存续得更久。索尼仍在生产高品质的电视，但已不再自行制造关键部件。其销量早已被韩国的三星(Samsung)和LG超越，如今在全球市场中仅占2%的份额。