Sony Shifts to Support MP3 Music Files

In a major strategic reversal, Sony Corp. said it planned to add support for MP3 music files to some of its portable music players.

The shift to support the widely used MP3 music format would end Sony’s long-standing insistence on its proprietary format called Atrac and better position the electronics giant against rivals such as Apple Computer Inc., whose portable players support both MP3s and other file formats.

Now, Sony plans to release some new flash-based players with both MP3 and Atrac playback as early as this year in Europe, a spokeswoman said. The company also is working to create software upgrades so owners of current models could play their songs in the MP3 format.

Similar plans are underway for the U.S. market, but no timetable has been set.

* Immersion Corp., a small firm that develops and licenses touch-related technologies, has been awarded $82 million after winning a patent infringement lawsuit against PlayStation maker Sony.