Pioneer and Panasonic in PDP partnership

Teaming up for plasma TV production

25 April 2008 10:31 GMT / By Amy-Mae Elliott

Pioneer and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., best known to consumers for its Panasonic products, have announced they have reached a "basic agreement on a comprehensive PDP business alliance to further progress and reinforce the PDP businesses".

The agreement mainly covers R&D as well as strategic production and supply of PDP and modules.

Pioneer recently announced it was stopping the in-house production of its PDP displays, but a partner for plasma production was not announced at the time, although they did reveal they will be teaming up with Sharp on LCDs.

Pioneer and Matsushita have been producing plasma TVs under their respective "KURO" and "VIERA" brands, but the companies state that their partnership - and linking up of respective in-house technologies - will make good "synergy", and presumably good TVs too.

The two companies say they will developing PDPs and modules that are eco-friendly and "excel" in performance and picture-quality and will continue to supply plasma TVs to the market under their own respective brand names.

The two companies will discuss further detail and conclude a formal agreement on the PDP business alliance around May 2008 with new Panasonic-produced Pioneer products due to market in autumn 2009.