Panasonic (brand)
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It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Panasonic Corporation. (Discuss) Proposed since November 2011. |
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| Type | Brand name of Panasonic Corporation |
|---|---|
| Industry | Electronics |
| Founded | March, 1918 |
| Founder(s) | Konosuke Matsushita |
| Headquarters | Kadoma, Osaka, Japan |
| Key people | Fumio Ohtsubo, President |
| Products | Television products telephones computers digital cameras |
| Revenue |  ¥8,137 (in billions) |
| Employees | 334,402 |
| Parent | Panasonic Corporation |
| Website | Panasonic Global Site |
Panasonic (パナソニック Panasonikku) is an international brand name for Japanese electric products manufacturer Panasonic Corporation, which was formerly known as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. Under this brand the company sells plasma and LCD display panels, DVD recorders and players, Blu-ray Disc players, camcorders, telephones, vacuum cleaners, microwave ovens, shavers, projectors, digital cameras, batteries, laptop computers (under the sub-brand Toughbook), portable CD, analog tape decks and home stereo equipment, fax machines, scanners, printers, electronic white-boards, electronic components and semiconductors, all of which are marketed under their slogan "Ideas for Life."
On January 10, 2008, Matsushita announced that it intends to change the company name to Panasonic Corporation, effective October 1, 2008. The proposal to change the company's name was approved at the firm's annual shareholder's meeting on June 26.[1] As of October 1, 2008, the company changed its name to Panasonic Corporation. Non-audio/visual products (mostly home appliances) used to be branded with "National" in Japan are now marketed under the Panasonic brand.
[edit] Introduction
The Panasonic brand was created by Matsushita in 1955 for the Americas region because the National brand was already registered by others.[2][3] The Panasonic brand was created from the elements "pan" meaning "all" combined with "sonic" meaning "sound", because it was first used for audio equipment.
Based on 2004 annual sales of electronics, Matsushita is the largest Japanese electronics maker ahead of Hitachi Ltd. Within the category of white goods, Matsushita is the world’s largest manufacturer.[citation needed] In the past, due to its imitation tactics Matsushita has been ridiculed in Japan as "Maneshita" ("mane" means imitation), but in fact Matsushita does vast amounts of its own product planning, research and development.
Including its related companies, Matsushita has developed a wide variety of enterprises, centering on home electronics, industrial equipment, and telecommunications equipment. Though not widely advertised before, in recent years its notebook computer line (Toughbook) has gained popularity and commercials for it are being aired on television. Other brand names associated with Panasonic include its Viera televisions and Lumix digital cameras.
The company's management style and corporate culture have been often compared to competitor Sony[citation needed]. When Sony is doing well, the number of books that praise Sony management increases, when conditions reverse, then more books that praise Panasonic management style are displayed in bookstores.[citation needed] Regardless of favorable sales and conditions, Sony and Panasonic are often viewed as rivals.[citation needed] This view probably arose from the videotape format wars between VHS (supported by Panasonic) and Betamax (supported by Sony).[4] The largest direct competition between Sony and Panasonic is currently in the segment of audio products; Panasonic is also considered as Sony's rival in sales of flat panel TVs, digital cameras and DVD recorders—areas where Panasonic is focusing its production, marketing and sales efforts. In contrast, Sony has recently diversified into the cinema, video game, and financial areas, whereas Panasonic's major appliances have no competition from Sony.
Matsushita's current corporate strategy is to seek cooperation and joint ventures in the development of certain technologies (such as LCDs), while continuing to compete against other companies such as Toshiba, Hitachi and Minebea to become the benchmark for Japanese electronics.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Panasonic brand history
- ^ Matsushita expands use of Panasonic brand name worldwide[dead link] in April, 2003
- ^ VCRs open age of convenience for viewers. Yomiuri Shimbun. The Daily Yomiuri. Pg. 17. May 20, 1995.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Panasonic |
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