Sculley Visit Renews Sony Rumors : * Technology: The Apple Computer chairman is in Japan for a trade show. Meanwhile, his company reaches a settlement in London with the Beatles’ recording firm.

Apple Computer Chairman John Sculley’s visit to Japan has renewed speculation about a possible alliance between Apple and Sony Corp. or another Japanese consumer electronics company.

Sculley reiterated Wednesday his desire to expand Apple’s computer know-how to a broader array of consumer products, such as advanced TVs and compact disk players, possibly through a tie-up with a Japanese consumer electronics company.

But he called reports that Apple is negotiating a “major linkup” with Sony “highly speculative.”

Sculley’s visit came on the occasion of a trade show for multimedia--an emerging family of technologies that combines words, pictures, sounds and moving images. Apple and Sony are both leaders in some aspects of multimedia technology, and both firms are eager to play a major role in this growing field.

One hurdle to Apple’s participation in multimedia was cleared away Thursday in London, when the company reached a settlement in a trademark infringement lawsuit filed by Apple Corps Ltd., the Beatles’ recording and licensing company.

Apple Corps sued the computer firm in 1989, accusing it of violating terms of a 1981 agreement that prohibited Apple Computer from selling products that could create or reproduce music.

An Apple Computer official said there was no direct link between the settlement--the terms of which are secret--and any current negotiations on multimedia. But the official added that it would simplify Apple’s participation in some aspects of multimedia technology.

Sony and Apple have had a long relationship, with Sony supplying monitors, disk drives and other computer components to Apple. Sony also was extensively involved in the design of Apple’s new Macintosh laptop computer line, expected to be announced late this month, and is manufacturing one of the models.

In addition, sources say both Sony and Apple hold equity stakes and are represented on the board of directors of General Magic, a Silicon Valley start-up company that is developing a hand-held computer and communications devices.

Despite these close ties, finding the common ground needed for a more formal, broad-based link-up is not easy. One source said, for example, that Sony wanted to sell the Macintosh laptop under its own name in addition to producing it for Apple, but Apple balked.