In a move that’s reminiscent of that time Oculus Rift raised a buttload of money only to fold into Facebook, Sony has suckered the general public into paying for one of its new projects. The WSJ reports that the massive electronics company was behind the wildly successful crowdfunding campaign that has raised 3.5 million yen ($30,000) to develop an electronic paper watch.

Though Sony is a $20 billion company that can presumably afford to pay for its own R&D, the WSJ reported the story with an uncritical, almost laudatory tone, characterizing the lack of transparency simply as part of “the team’s strategy.” One team member interviewed said, “We hid Sony’s name because we wanted to test the real value of the product, whether there will be demand for our concept.” Because in the history of marketing, there have never ways to test consumer demand that don’t involve duping the custmer? Okay then.

(Photo: Fashion Entertainments)