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Sony Corp., Amazon Collectively Pledge $15 Million to Los Angeles County Wildfire Relief

Sony Corp., Amazon Collectively Pledge $15 Million to Los Angeles County Wildfire Relief

Sony Corp. and Amazon Jan. 13 pledged $5 million and $10 million, respectively, to first responders, firefighters and aid organizations dealing with the ongoing wildfires across Los Angeles County.

The amounts rival other donations from media companies, including $15 million from Disney, $10 million each from Netflix and Comcast/NBCUniversal, and $1 million each from Paramount Global and Fox Corp.

Sony Pictures Entertainment is also providing medical, mental, housing and insurance assistance for affected employees.

“Los Angeles has been the home of our entertainment business for more than 35 years. Through our many thousands of employees, partners and friends based there, our roots run deep in this community,” Sony Group Corp. chairman and CEO Kenichiro Yoshida, and president, COO and CFO Hiroki Totoki wrote in a joint statement. “We will continue work with our local business leadership to determine how best Sony Group can support relief and recovery efforts in the days ahead. Our thoughts go out to those who are impacted by this devastating situation.”

Separately, Amazon’s entertainment division, which includes Amazon MGM Studios, Prime Video and Amazon Music teamed with Amazon Web Services, Ring and Whole Foods Market to collectively donate $10 million to relief efforts.

Funds will go to the American Red Cross of Southern California, FireAid, MusiCares Fire Relief Effort, World Central Kitchen, Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation, Habitat for Los Angeles Wildfire Fund, and Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce Small Business Relief/Recovery Fund, among others, as well as in-kind advertising opportunities on Prime Video for nonprofits supporting fire relief efforts.

To date, Amazon says it has donated more than 145,000 essential items to 17 local organizations working on wildfire response, including fire stations, community fire brigades, the Los Angeles Unified School District, Dream Center, and multiple YMCA chapters.

“We’re also deploying our AWS cloud technology, including drone support, to help emergency responders better understand and react to the evolving wildfire situation,” Amazon said in a blog post.

Amazon is also curating opportunities for its employees in Southern California to volunteer with organizations such as the LA Regional Food Bank and LA Unified School district, among others.
 

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