, colloquially known as Panasonic, is a Japanese multinational electronics manufacturer, headquartered in Kadoma, Osaka, Japan. It produces a wide range of products and services, including consumer electronics, rechargeable batteries, automotive and avionic systems, industrial equipment, as well as home renovation and construction. The company is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the Nikkei 225 and TOPIX 100 indices, with a secondary listing on the Nagoya Stock Exchange.
The company was founded by Kōnosuke Matsushita in 1918 as and incorporated in 1935 as with some of its earliest products being radios, electric irons and bicycle lamps, under the National brand name. During wartime, Matsushita launched and made military components such as ships and aircraft for the Japanese state. By 1950, the company's assets were unfrozen and went public, and Matsushita became known for consumer white goods, black-and-white televisions and transistor radios. In addition to National, the Panasonic brand name was first adopted in 1955 for export markets and later still also created the Technics brand for audio equipment.
During the late 20th century, the company overtook Philips to become the world's largest manufacturer of consumer electronics. Matsushita had also been the majority owner of the Victor Company of Japan (JVC), and briefly from 1990–95 also owned the American media entertainment giant MCA Inc.. In 2008, the company divested its JVC subsidiary, discontinued its National brand in Japan, and changed its official corporate name from Matsushita Electric to In 2022, it reorganized as a holding company and adopted its current name.
Corporate name From 1935 to October 1, 2008, the company's corporate name was "Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd." (MEI).松下電器産業株式会社が「パナソニック株式会社」に社名変更 , Panasonic Corporation. October 1, 2008. Retrieved October 3, 2008.. On January 10, 2008, the company announced that it would change its name to "Panasonic Corporation", in effect on October 1, 2008, to conform with its global brand name "Panasonic". The name change was approved at the shareholders' meeting on June 26, 2008.
In 2022, Panasonic announced a reorganization plan which split the company into Panasonic Holdings Corporation (the former Panasonic Corporation) and conversion of its divisions into subsidiaries; the Lifestyle Updates Business Division being the division that took the Panasonic Corporation name after the reorganization. The reorganization took effect on April 1, 2022.
Brand names Panasonic Corporation currently sells virtually all of its products and services worldwide under the Panasonic brand, having phased out the Sanyo brand in the first quarter of 2012. It uses the marketing slogan "A Better Life, A Better World". The company has sold products under a number of other brand names during its history.
In 1927, Matsushita adopted the brand name for a new lamp product. In 1955, the company began branding audio speakers and lamps as "PanaSonic" for markets outside of Japan."Now!—From Japan—the PanaSonic" (advertisement). Audio,September 1955, 15. Further refined to Panasonic, taken from the words "pan" – meaning "all" – and "sonic" – meaning "sound", the brand was created for the Americas because the National brand was already registered by others. Panasonic also sold the first bread machine.See the case study of the breadmaker's development, as an example of knowledge management and innovation, in Nonaka, I. and Takeuchi, H. (1995), The Knowledge-Creating Company, Oxford University Press.
The company began to use the brand name in 1965 for audio equipment. The use of multiple brands lasted for some decades. While National had been the premier brand on most Matsushita products, including audio and video, National and Panasonic were combined as National Panasonic in 1997 after the worldwide success of the Panasonic name.
In 1974, Motorola sold its Quasar brand and facilities to Matsushita.
In May 2003, the company announced that Panasonic would become its global brand, and launched the global tagline "Panasonic ideas for life." By March 2004, Matsushita replaced the National name for products and outdoor signboards, except for those in Japan. They would eventually phase out the National brand in Japan by March 2010.
In September 2013, the company adopted a new tagline to better illustrate its vision: "A Better Life, A Better World."
The Chinese company Shun Hing Electric Works and Engineering Co. Ltd (信興電工工程有限公司) has sold imported Panasonic and National branded products under the brand name Rasonic since the Matsushita Electric Industrial era. They have also sold MEI and Panasonic products under their original brand names. In June 1994, Panasonic Shun Hing Industrial Devices Sales (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd. (松下信興機電(香港)有限公司) and Panasonic SH Industrial Sales (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd. (松下电子机电(深圳)有限公司) were established by a joint venture between Matsushita Electric Industrial and Shun Hing Group respectively, making Rasonic a product brand for MEI and subsequently the Panasonic Corporation.
In September 2014, Panasonic announced the revival of the Technics brand, first in European markets in December of that year.
History
20th century
Panasonic, then Matsushita Electric, was founded in 1918 by Kōnosuke Matsushita as a vendor of duplex lamp sockets. In the 1920s, Matsushita began regularly launching products. In 1927, he produced a line of bicycle lamps that were the first to be marketed with the National brand name. During World War II, the company operated factories in Japan and other parts of Asia which produced electrical components and appliances such as light fixtures, motors, electric irons, wireless equipment and its first vacuum tubes.
After the war, the Matsushita group, largely having been split into MEI and MEW by the dissolution imposed by the occupation force, imperfectly regrouped as a Keiretsu and began to supply the post-war boom in Japan with radios and appliances, as well as bicycles. Matsushita's brother-in-law, Toshio Iue, founded Sanyo as a subcontractor for components after World War II. Sanyō grew to become a competitor to Matsushita, but was later acquired by Panasonic in December 2009.
In 1961, Matsushita traveled to the United States and met American dealers. The company began producing television sets for the U.S. market under the Panasonic brand name, and expanded the use of the brand to Europe in 1979.Panasonic expands use of Panasonic brand name globally in April 2003. /* Introduction */ Shahid Kapoor was the brand ambassador for Panasonic India from 2005 to 2010. Now Ranbir Kapoor has taken over along with Katrina Kaif. .
Its plant in 1963 produced eight TV sets per minute, accounting for 21.8% of Japan's production of cathode ray tube television sets at the time, the largest share out of any company.
The company used the National brand outside North America from the 1950s to the 1970s (the trademark could not be used in the United States because it was already in use). The inability to use the National brand name led to the creation of the Panasonic brand in the United States. Over the next several decades, Matsushita released additional products, including black and white TVs (1952), electrical blenders, fridges (1953), rice cookers (1959), color TVs, microwave ovens (1966), and analog synthesizers (1975, advertised as mini-organs).
The company debuted a high-fidelity audio speaker in Japan in 1965 with the brand Technics. This line of high quality stereo components became a worldwide favorite, the most famous products being its turntables, such as the SL-1200 record player, known for its high-performance, precision and durability. Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, Matsushita continued to produce high-quality specialized electronics for niche markets, such as shortwave radios, and developed its successful line of stereo receivers, CD players and other components.
In 1968, Matsushita began to make rotary compressors for air conditioners, and, in 1971, it began to make absorption chillers, also for air-conditioning applications.
In 1972, Matsushita established its first overseas factory, in Malaysia.
In 1973, Matsushita established "Anam National", joint venture with Anam Group in South Korea.
On May 28, 1974, Matsushita acquired Motorola's Quasar television business for approximately $108 million including its United States manufacturing plants in Franklin Park; Pontiac; and Quincy, Illinois; as well as its Canadian manufacturing plant in Markham, Ontario.
In 1983, Matsushita launched the Panasonic Senior Partner, the first fully IBM PC compatible Japanese-made computer. A year later, Panasonic released the Executive Partner, the first affordable portable computer with a plasma display. Around this time the company also introduced inverter air conditioners.
In 1984, Matsushita established the Panasoft software label, which published software for MSX computers from 1984 to 1989. The company also manufactured MSX computers of its own, such as Panasonic FS-A1.
In November 1990, Matsushita agreed to acquire an American media company, MCA Inc., the predecessor of both Universal Music Group and Universal Pictures, for US$6.59 billion. The acquisition was preceded by the takeover of Columbia Pictures by Sony, the arch rival of Matsushita. At the time, Matsushita had dominated the home video market with the company's leading position in the electronics market. It had been strengthened by VHS, the de facto standard of consumer videotape that Matsushita and JVC co-introduced. Inspired by Sony's bold quest for Hollywood, Matsushita believed it could become a leader in the film industry as well. However, Matsushita subsequently sold 80% of MCA to Seagram Company for US$7 billion in April 1995, demoralized by the high volatility of the film industry.
In 1992, Matsushita made the Panasonic FS-A1GT, the last model of the MSX turbo R computer.
In 1993, Matsushita released the CF-V21P, the first notebook computer to have an integrated CD-ROM drive as an option (although only up to 80mm/3.5 inch diameter mini CDs instead of standard 120mm/4.7 inch diameter discs).
In July 1994, Panasonic announced it will close the former Motorola television manufacturing plant in Franklin Park, Illinois by the start of 1995, and will lay off 330 employees at the plant, shifting production to a facility in Tijuana, Mexico.
In 1998, Matsushita sold Anam National to Anam Electronics.
2000–2020 On May 2, 2002, Panasonic Canada marked its 35th anniversary in that country by giving $5 million to help build a "music city" on Toronto's waterfront.
In 2003, the Panasonic Viera (stylized VIERA) sub-brand was launched in Japan for the company's flat-panel TVs and then released in other territories. Matsushita embraced and was confident in plasma display technology and heavily invested in them. Panasonic was the largest global brand of plasma televisions for a while. However in later years when plasma was ailing against LCDs, Panasonic was forced to scale back and discontinued production of plasma TVs in 2014 and moved entirely to production of LCD.Panasonic weighs exit from struggling TV business | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis The Viera brand has since been dropped outside the Japanese market.
In 2005, Matsushita Toshiba Picture Display Co. Ltd. (a joint venture between Matsushita and Toshiba created in 2002) stopped production of CRTs at its factory in Horseheads, New York. A year later, in 2006, it stopped production at its Malaysian factory, following heavy losses. In 2007, it bought the venture from Toshiba, eventually ending all production.
On January 19, 2006, Matsushita announced that it would stop producing analog televisions (then 30% of its total TV business) from the next month, to concentrate on digital televisions.