Whatever Matsushita’s game strategy is, it’s working. The parent company of Panasonic, the market leader in plasma TVs, announced that its fiscal first-quarter financial performance improved over that of last year’s. Higher income was generated by increased sales of the Panasonic Viera line of plasma TVs and the company shows no indication of letting up.
Panasonic further aims to retain its share of the global plasma TV market and kick competitor butt by developing even more high-end flat panel screens and launching more aggressive marketing and advertising campaigns. Where will the company get the funds for these initiatives? Unfortunately, Panasonic plans to downsize its manufacturing operations in the United States by 18 percent and to spend the money to be saved from the downsizing for marketing purposes.
High-definition (HD) plasma TVs are top on the Panasonic priority list. Broadcasters are increasingly offering HD programming and this is one of the main factors in the increase in demand for HD televisions. Will the decline in plasma TV prices affect Matsushita’s bottom line? The company believes that its strategy of focusing on expensive and higher-quality plasma TVs will keep it running in the black.
Get the lowdown on Matsushita’s fiscal first quarter profits and plasma TV plans in a report by Daisuke Takato for Bloomberg.com.
