Matsushita Electric -Panasonic- Receives 1999 Emmy Award for Key Contributions To The Development Of DVD Technology
Matsushita/Panasonic's 12th Technical Emmy Award Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (MEI), best known for its Panasonic brand products, has received a prestigious Emmy award recognizing its key contributions to the development of DVD technology. With this latest award, Matsushita Electric and its unit companies have now received 12 Technical Emmys; eight of these Emmys were awarded for digital video technology, an area in which Panasonic has received more Emmy Awards than any other company. Presented yesterday evening at a gala event in Manhattan, the 1999 award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) honors Matsushita Electric for its technology developments that led to the wide range of consumer and professional DVD hardware and software now on the market. These products include Panasonic DVD-Video players, discs, authoring systems and replication systems, DVD-Audio players and discs, DVD-RAM and DVD-ROM drives and discs, DVD car entertainment/navigation systems and DVD-ROM PCs, as well as LSIs and optical pick-up modules. First introduced in 1997, DVD-format software, players and drives are well on their way to becoming the leading home entertainment and data storage medium as the world enters the 21st century. In fact, DVD video players already are the most successful new consumer electronics product in history, with first-year sales easily surpassing VCR and CD player sales during the first twelve months those products were available. Accepting the award for Matsushita Electric was Dr. Yoshitomi Nagaoka, MEI board member and Vice President of the AVC Company unit of MEI. Winners of the annual NATAS Technical Emmys are selected by blue-ribbon judging panels, which include some of the industry's most highly qualified scientists and engineers. In 1997, Matsushita/Panasonic was the first company to introduce DVD players in the U.S. The company was also first to market with both DVD-ROM and DVD-RAM, and in addition, was first to establish a U.S.-based facility exclusively devoted to the replication of DVD discs (Panasonic Disc Services Corporation, in Torrance, CA). Earlier this year, Panasonic established a second plant to replicate DVD discs - a joint venture with Universal Studios - in Illinois. Based in Osaka, Japan, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (NYSE: MC) is one of the world's leading producers of electronic and electric products for consumer, business and industrial use. Matsushita markets its products under the Panasonic, Technics, Quasar and National brands and recorded sales of $63.7 billion for the fiscal year ended March 1999. In North America, Matsushita Electric Corporation of America and its affiliates operate 24 manufacturing sites and employ more than 23,000 people. For more information on Matsushita/Panasonic, visit www.panasonic.com.