Sony continues its plan to release new Walkman products that accommodate the MP3 format, and to upgrade previous models with MP3-compatible firmware. No doubt the company wishes to erase a particularly foolish portion of its history. British mag PC Pro is running a nice little piece that refuses to let Sony off the hook, written by Alun Williams.

'At Sony, we understand the needs of music lovers and the different ways people consume and interact with music because of our great heritage in the personal audio arena,' [Gregory Kukolj] added, despite the fact that other digital music player manufacturers have incorporated the standard in their devices for years. Indeed it was Sony's need as a music publisher that drove it to develop its ATRAC3 format, which constrains the way consumers transfer their music between devices.

Unfortunately, the new devices will be available only in Europe for the foreseeable future. So much for salvaging Sony's tattered reputation.