On Wednesday, Sony announced that it would be forming a subsidiary called Aerosense Inc. to build drones equipped with sensors for enterprise customers. Sony added that it would be teaming up with a Tokyo-based startup called ZMP, which will own half of the subsidiary.

Aerosense will be grown out of Sony's mobility unit, which also makes sensors that are found on Apple and Samsung smartphones today. But despite its origins in a more consumer-oriented branch of Sony, Aerosense will eschew the consumer drone market for an equally-crowded enterprise drone market. Sony said that it plans to leverage its “camera, sensing, telecommunications network, and robotics technologies,” to build competitive enterprise-grade drones.

(One can only hope that the lessons Sony learned from the well-loved robot dog Aibo carry over into the Sony's next robotics endeavor. The company only discontinued support for Aibo in 2014, and dedicated fans spend hundreds of dollars to keep their Aibos “alive” and even hold funerals for them when they can not be saved.)

ZMP has expertise in automated driving technology and robotics as well. Sony and ZMP previously worked together on autonomous vehicle projects, and according to the Wall Street Journal, the company also is working with video game company DeNA to develop self-driving taxis.

But according to Sony's press release, enterprise-grade business is its only target right now. Aerosense will pair drone hardware with aerial imaging and “cloud-based data processing” for companies looking for “comprehensive solutions that meet needs including measuring, surveying, observing, and inspecting.” Sony has indicated that it will not sell the drones it makes—instead it will sell services using the drones. It's unclear if Sony will have a schedule of enterprise-geared services that a company can pick and choose from, or if a company would work with Aerosense to equip a drone for a custom job. Sony did not respond to Ars' request for comment.

Aerosense is set to launch in August, but it won't offer drone flights until the beginning of 2016.

It's unclear whether Aerosense will offer its services in the US initially, but the market for commercial drone flight is growing. Until 2014, the Federal Aviation Administration maintained that commercial operation of drones in US airspace was illegal. But as more companies, especially those in Hollywood and logistics industries (like Amazon), began pitching drone-based businesses, the FAA started granting exceptions to its stricter rules on a case-by-case basis. (Amazon's delivery-by-drone idea remains grounded for now.)

Ryan Calo, a law professor at the University of Washington who specializes in issues concerning robotics, noted that Sony's focus on service-focused drone flight was an odd move for a company better known for its consumer-facing products. “I'm a little surprised by the business model,” Calo said. “Commercial drones are not as interesting as they could be. What's going to make drones really interesting is the notion that third parties can make software and applications.” Calo noted that Sony showed its distaste for allowing third-party coders to make software for its robots with the aforementioned Aibo, sending a DMCA takedown notice in the early 2000s to enthusiasts that built their own programs for the dogs. By controlling its new drones and only selling services, however, Sony may be able to side step that.

Calo doubted that the business-focused entry had anything to do with the regulations surrounding drones in the US and elsewhere, if the company does launch its drone business in the US. “If anything they take on far greater legal responsibility by flying drones themselves,” Calo said, adding that flying drones on behalf of businesses who need services like surveying done could “manage their product's liability risk better.”