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Panasonic Provides Tools for High Definition 2008 Games

With its Olympic concept slogan “Sharing the Passion,” Panasonic will support the Olympic Games with advanced audio-visual (AV) technologies that will deliver the excitement of the Games’ top world athletes to people around the world. At Olympic venues, Panasonic will provide a variety of products to create excitement including ASTROVISION—large-scale video displays—professional audio systems and surveillance cameras. The public will be able to simultaneously enjoy the Games’ excitement from the comfort of their couches at home via our broadcasting with our VIERA PDP TVs and our home-theatre systems. They can record and replay the action with Panasonic DVD recorders.

In order to realize "Sharing the Passion," Panasonic will provide the latest in high-definition recording and broadcasting equipment to the BOB (Beijing Olympic Broadcasting Company Limited), enabling it to produce the first 100-percent high-definition television coverage of the Games ever.

Panasonic has been an Olympic TOP (The Olympic Partner Programme) sponsor since the Olympic Games in Calgary and Seoul in 1988 and is committed to supporting the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, which will take place from August 8 to 24 in Beijing.

According to Jacky Hayashi, the chief manager of the Beijing Olympic Project Office, BOB will adopt Panasonic professional digital broadcasting equipment because Panasonic has a wide range of HD products, including its P2 (solid-state recording) HD equipment such as the new AJ-HPC2000 P2 HD Camcorder, the new AJ-HPM100 P2 Mobile Recorder, and the new P2 Station AJ-HPS1500 P2 Station.

The official HD video-recording format of the Beijing Games will be DVCPRO HD, and BOB will use a combination of DVCPRO HD tape recording and P2 HD solid-state memory recording. Deployed in various competition venues throughout China, the Panasonic HD equipment will be used by BOB and other broadcasters.

Having been an Olympic TOP sponsor for more than 20 years, Panasonic’s sponsorship is progressing.

“Panasonic collaborates with the organisers of sporting, musical and cultural events in a wide range of fields. Our involvement in the Olympic Games, generally recognised to be the world's premier sporting event, is aimed at contributing to society and promoting the image of the Panasonic brand on a global scale. We believe that this involvement, which began with the Calgary 1988 Olympic Games and has continued ever since, enhances the sense of quality, reliability and excitement people feel towards our products and technology,” Hayashi said.

Though there will be no advertisements or logos in any of Beijing's Olympic venues, Olympic sponsors have the right to use the five-ring Olympic emblem, the logo of the Beijing Games organising committee and the mascots of the Games in their global advertising activities for their products.

“Our audio and video equipment will be used throughout the various sporting venues and our video monitors, editors and other broadcast equipment will be used at the International Broadcast Centre to bring the Olympic Games to billions of people around the world,” Hayashi said “We will use the Olympic emblem and logos for every kind of marketing opportunity including advertisements, promotional events, publicity materials, exhibitions, Web sites, annual reports and company brochures.”

“Being a sponsor allows us to showcase our products at Olympic venues, and we consider sponsorship to be a foreword-looking investment that brings results in the form of future orders. However, our corporate commitment to participate in Olympic Movement as is to contribute to society by supporting the international sporting event known as the Olympic Games, and to enhance the Panasonic brand value.

“We are pleased that BOB turned to Panasonic products for this high-profile high definition TV production,” said Hayashi. “From a technological perspective, the Beijing Games will be particularly exciting. We are pleased that BOB, as well as other broadcasters — and the global audience for the coming historic event — will benefit from Panasonic’s efforts to deliver advanced, practical HD solutions as the industry makes the transition to high definition broadcasting.”