Panasonic to Launch Marketing Campaign for Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games

Tokyo, Japan - Panasonic Corporation, the Official Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Audio and Visual Equipment category for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, announced it will bring its Full HD 3D Plasma Home Theater System* to the City of Vancouver's live site to share the utmost excitement of spectacular images with the residents and visitors from all over the world. This is part of the company's Games-related marketing programs to be carried out under its Olympic slogan, "Sharing the Passion."

Panasonic will set up a 700 m² corporate pavilion called "Panasonic FULL HD 3D THEATER" at the David Lam Park live site throughout the Games period from February 12 to 28, 2010 under the cooperation with the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC), the City of Vancouver and Canada's Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium, the official Canadian broadcaster of the 2010 Winter Games. The central piece of the pavilion will be Panasonic's world-first Full HD 3D Plasma Home Theater System that allows visitors to immerse themselves in true-to-life images. A variety of sports and entertainment videos will be shown in movie-theater quality in the pavilion, so that they will feel as if they were part of the scene.

As a series of 3D films were announced recently by Hollywood studios, expectations for 3D broadcasting of sporting events are on the rise. Panasonic believes 3D systems promise whole new possibilities of home entertainment to watch the Olympic Games, engaging the viewers in the living room with stereoscopic full HD 3D images.

Panasonic has been contributing to the Olympic Games with its state-of-the-art digital AV technologies since the Calgary 1988 Olympic Winter Games. The company, who has committed to the global sponsorship through 2016, continues to support them with its cutting-edge technologies to bring a new dimension of reality and fun to watch the Olympic Games in full HD 3D at homes around the world.

Following the announcement of the Full HD 3D Plasma Home Theater System using its 103-inch PDP and Blu-ray Disc player in September 2008, Panasonic developed a 50-inch 3D PDP in September 2009. It also has been developing professional 3D production systems to improve the production environment and make it easier for content creators to create more 3D programming for consumers.

The second marketing program involves a blog. On November 2, Panasonic launched a blog "One Winter, Five Dreams" within its global Olympic Games web site in a tie-up with five athletes who are striving to win a place at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Using videos and photos, the five athletes with highly unique experiences, will blog about daily training and events and their passion in pursuit of their dreams of becoming an Olympian. Readers can post messages on the blog to encourage and support them to realize their dreams. A person who gives the most support to the athletes through the blog will be sent to the 2010 Winter Games as the "Gold Blogger" to cheer on them at the venues. The five athletes include Robel Teklemariam (men's cross-country skiing, Ethiopia), Clyde Getty (men's freestyle skiing, Argentina), Tugba Karademir (ladies figure skating, Turkey), Katharine Eustace (women's skeleton, New Zealand) and Kazuhiro Koshi (men's skeleton, Japan). Their blogs will appear at http://5dreams.panasonic.net

The third marketing program focuses on environmental conservation. VANOC has made sustainability one of the main themes of the 2010 Winter Games, taking measures to reduce the environmental impacts of the Games. Panasonic supports the goals of VANOC's sustainability-focused operations and will implement various environmental programs during the period of the Olympic Games.

For example, as an Official Partner, Panasonic will cosponsor the Do Your Part - VANOC Sustainability Video Contest aimed at Canadian youth aged 13-24. The contest is promoted jointly by VANOC, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the Government of Canada. Panasonic will make use of its long-term experience with Kid Witness News (KWN), its hands-on video educational program started in 1989, in order to encourage interaction and environmental activities by children in Canada and around the world through the making of videos.

Panasonic will also cooperate with VANOC and the Official Carbon Offset Supplier, Offsetters, to contribute to VANOC's goal of having a "Carbon-neutral Olympic Games" by offsetting 416 tons of CO2 emissions, an estimated total amount of CO2 released from various activities Panasonic will carry out during the period of the Games.

For more information on the company's environmental activities, access to http://panasonic.net/eco/ and on KWN, go to http://panasonic.net/kwn/

About Panasonic

Panasonic is proud to support the Olympic Movement-aimed at promoting world peace through sports-as the Official Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Audio and Visual Equipment category for more than 20 years since The Olympic Partner (TOP) Program commenced for the Calgary Olympic Winter Games in 1988. Under the slogan of "Sharing the Passion," Panasonic will contribute to the success of the Olympic Games through its technology. In 2007 Panasonic renewed the partnership with the International Olympic Committee through to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Website: http://panasonic.net/olympic/ Video: http://www.thenewsmarket.com/