Oct 07, 2009

Press Release

Orders in CRT Investigation issued by JFTC

Osaka, Japan - MT Picture Display Co., Ltd., ("MTPD"), a subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation was issued a cease and desist order by the Japan Fair Trade Commission ("JFTC") today. In addition, PT.MT Picture Display Indonesia, MT Picture Display (Thailand) Co., Ltd. and MT Picture Display (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., which are overseas subsidiaries of MTPD, were each issued surcharge payment orders. Panasonic Corporation and MTPD take this matter very seriously. Both companies are fully committed to complying with all relevant laws and regulations.

1. Content of the Cease and Desist Order

The Cease and Desist Order alleges that from May 2003 to March 2007 MTPD and its manufacturing subsidiaries in Southeast Asia agreed with other cathode ray tube ("CRT") manufacturers to set minimum target prices for 14, 20 and 21 inch CRTs to be sold to TV manufacturers located in Southeast Asia, in violation of Article 3 of the Antimonopoly Act. The Order requires MTPD to take measures to cease and desist from such acts and confirm that such violations have been eliminated. (The allegations in the Orders are directed at Southeast Asian territories, and do not involve sales in any other parts of the world.)

2. Content of the Surcharge Payment Order

The following are the amounts of the surcharge to be paid by each of the companies:

MT Picture Display Indonesia K.K.
JPY 580,270,000
MT Picture Display Thailand K.K. JPY 566,140,000
MT Picture Display Malaysia K.K. JPY 650,830,000

3. Future Handling

MTPD has already exited the CRT business, and there are no other Panasonic-related companies engaging in this business. Panasonic believes there are significant concerns about some legal aspects of the JFTC's Orders. The company is currently studying the Orders and will consider the possibility of challenging them through hearing procedures.


<Reference>

[MT Picture Display Co., Ltd. —Corporate Information—]

Address 15 Matsuo-cho 1-chome, Kadoma City, Osaka
Stated Capital JPY 10 billion
President Tatsuo Tobinaga
Corporate History
April 1, 2003: Incorporated as a business integration company between Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (currently, Panasonic Corporation) and Toshiba Corporation.
(Corporate Name: Matsushita-Toshiba Picture Display Co., Ltd.)
March 30, 2007: Became a 100% subsidiary of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., and the corporate name was changed to MT Picture Display Co., Ltd.
Purpose of the Business Repair service of cathode ray tubes.

About Panasonic

Panasonic Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development and manufacture of electronic products for a wide range of consumer, business, and industrial needs. Based in Osaka, Japan, the company recorded consolidated net sales of 7.77 trillion yen (US$78.4 billion) for the year ended March 31, 2009. The company's shares are listed on the Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and New York (NYSE: PC) stock exchanges. For more information on the company and the Panasonic brand, visit the company's website at http://panasonic.net.

Media Contacts:

Akira Kadota, International PR
Panasonic Corporation
Tel: 03-6403-3040 Fax: 03-3436-6766
Panasonic News Bureau
Tel: 03-3542-6205 Fax: 03-3542-9018
*The content in the following news releases is accurate at the time of publication but may be subject to change without notice. Please note therefore that these documents may not always contain the most up-to-date information.

Banner area begins from here.

The content in this website is accurate at the time of publication but may be subject to change without notice.
Please note therefore that these documents may not always contain the most up-to-date information.
Please note that German, French and Chinese versions are machine translations, so the quality and accuracy may vary.