And Sony, as have the other studios being criticized for their aggressive accounting, says that it is doing nothing wrong.

Investors are suspicious of any item in a company's financial statements that may allow for aggressive accounting.

That would give regulators a chance to monitor new forms of aggressive accounting and to take quick action if need be.

If it's the job of management to represent the interest of current shareholders, arguably that's what aggressive accounting did.

More recently, investors and analysts have called into question practices that even the company acknowledged were "aggressive accounting."

This year's budget involves a different, though equally pernicious, kind of aggressive accounting.

And because of the company's aggressive accounting in the past, he may have had to do some heavy lifting.

Reported profits rose more in the 1990's than did real earnings, thanks to that aggressive accounting.

Companies are still paying the price for their aggressive accounting.

"Virtually every company has some element of aggressive accounting to it," he said.