Sony to Abandon Its eVilla Net Device

Electronics giant Sony Corp. abruptly pulled the plug Thursday on its 2-month-old Internet appliance, the latest in a growing line of failed computer-like gadgets designed to access the Net.

In an unusually swift and public about-face, Sony said it was withdrawing the $500 eVilla Network Entertainment Center from retailers and offering full refunds to buyers. Online service for the devices, which cost almost as much as some entry-level computers, will end Sept. 13.

Spokesman John Dolak offered little insight into Sony’s decision, other than to say that “the product fell short of our initial expectations in terms of stability and usability.”

Analysts blamed slow sales and the demise of Be Inc., which made the core software for the eVilla. But they also suggested that Sony made some bad choices about the device, which received virtually no marketing support from the company.

“With PC prices dropping as far as they’ve dropped, it’s hard to do a quality appliance and provide it at a price the market would accept,” said analyst Rob Enderle with the Giga Information Group in Santa Clara, Calif.

The quick demise of the eVilla highlights a remarkable--and recent--change in the technology market: As with a new release from a Hollywood studio, there’s a very small amount of time for a product to generate the buzz needed to thrive.

The curtain has been falling particularly fast on Internet appliances, a once-hot concept that has yet to strike a chord with consumers. This year, 3Com Corp. terminated its Audrey Internet appliance, and Gateway Inc. all but abandoned its Touch Pad within about six months.

“You used to be able to create a buzz within a six-to-nine-month period,” said Donna Candelori, president of Candelori Communications in Sunnyvale, Calif. “Now, company expectations [of market acceptance] as well as press and analyst acceptance of an incoming new [product] is two to four months.”

Candelori said such short time frames can work against products that, although good, need time to find their market. Examples include the Palm Pilot and even the original IBM PC, which when launched was substantially more expensive--and had less software available--than its rivals.

Reviewers gave the eVilla a lukewarm reception, suggesting that consumers could have a full-fledged computer for about the same price. Forbes magazine offering the most prescient comment in June: “If you must have one, better buy it quick because if recent history is any judge, it won’t be around for long.”

Enderle called the eVilla “one of the better products on the market.” But when Palm Inc. bought Be’s assets and declined to support the eVilla, Sony chose to kill the product rather than develop or buy replacement software, he said.

The bulky eVilla boasted a sharp display and a simplified set of controls, providing easy access to a preset collection of Web sites. Although the software seemed designed for Net novices, Sony said the device was aimed at Internet-savvy families who didn’t want to buy another computer.

But the eVilla didn’t live up to its billing as a “network entertainment center,” largely because its dial-up modem was ill-suited to delivering Web entertainment. Nor could the device connect directly to other networks or computers, although users could e-mail files or transfer them from the eVilla to other Sony devices via a removable Sony memory card.

“The fundamental thing wrong with it was a Sony network was not there to connect it to,” said analyst Richard Doherty with the Envisioneering Group of Seaford, N.Y. Although a number of manufacturers were developing products to compete with the eVilla, Doherty said, there’s little chance those devices will come to the market now.

“In this time, at least, people aren’t going to spend $400 to $750 for a non-PC device,” said Doherty, who labeled the eVilla “the third tombstone” after the Audrey and the Touch Pad.

Enderle predicted that Internet appliances will resurface but only after high-speed Internet connections become widespread. “They’re coming, but they require so much more in terms of . . . services and bandwidth to become a really compelling solution,” he said.

Dolak of Sony declined to say how many eVillas were sold since its debut in July or to elaborate on the stability and usability issues. Although he wouldn’t say how many customers had complained about the product, he said the requests for customer support were greater than Sony anticipated.

The move won’t affect Sony’s strategy for broadband, or high-speed Internet connections, Dolak said. The main lesson the company learned, he added, is that “this is a radically changing marketplace in terms of pricing and technology.”

Sony shares fell $1.41 to $45.92 on the New York Stock Exchange.

*

Healey is a Times staff writer, and Kellner is a freelance writer.