IBM Japan Ltd. has become a provider of data-controlling software for digital home appliances for Sony Corp., an IBM Japan spokesman said Thursday.

"DB2 Everyplace, an embedded software, has been adopted as one of the platforms for Sony's digital home appliances," he said, adding that the contract was signed in late December.

IBM Japan is a wholly owned unit of IBM of the United States.

Embedded software is used in products such as mobile phones, car navigation systems, digital television sets and other digital appliances.

According to IBM Japan, DB2 Everyplace can select the latest information from databases at servers and send it to mobile equipment via the Internet.

Its use in digital appliances will boost the functions of the mobile and digital devices, such as automatic updating of information and downloading of music and videos. In becoming a supplier for Sony, IBM Japan added certain functions to an existing DB2 Everyplace model to meet the specification needs of Sony.

IBM Japan will add the model it developed for Sony to its product lineup.