(It's funny how everybody smaller than the Big 5 was considered technically an "independent" label, regardless of how they operated; as such, this lead to anomalies such as well-known indie-pop artists NSync and Britney Spears dominating the NME "indie" charts. On one extreme you have people who say that EMI is an indie label as they're not part of a zaibatsu, and at the other there are the indiekid snobs who would classify labels such as Matador as not being real indies because they're not run out of a bedroom.)
Sony bought part or all of Ericsson's mobile division when Ericsson decided to quit the business (apparently Nokia were thrashing them quite soundly).
Not to mention Killing Heidi; though that's technically now Sony.
Btw, I'm still undecided whether the new Bowie album (owned by him, distributed by Sony) should be exempt from my Sony Music boycott.
My friend's band is in the process of signing to Anti, a division of Epitaph. It isn't official yet, but as soon as it is, I'm sure the "sellout" accusations will start flying.
That's interesting. I once got someone enraged when I told them Savage Garden were technically an indie band. At least BMG haven't gone megalomaniac like Vivendi Universal, who are running around buying water rights before Monsanto gets them. Also, when the heck did Sony buy out Ericcson? I missed that, only noticed it on a mobile phone ad tonight...