ORGANIZATION
Panasonic Holdings Corporation
Panasonic began as Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works, which Konosuke Matsushita set up on 7 March 1918. It was incorporated as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. in 1935, renamed Panasonic Corporation in October 2008, and in April 2022 moved to an operating-company structure under the holding company Panasonic Holdings. In home video, the company says it jointly developed VHS on the basis of proposals from its subsidiary JVC, and it launched its own VHS recorders in 1977. It also took part in setting the CD, DVD and Blu-ray formats. It made SANYO Electric a consolidated subsidiary in 2009 and let go of its automotive systems company in 2024. It now reports six segments, Connect, Electric Works, HVAC & CC, Energy, Industry and Smart Life, and net sales for the year ended March 2026 were ¥8,048.7 billion.
Organization
- Founded
- 1918
- Status
- Active
- Active
- 1918–
- Appearances
- 01
- Name
- ENPanasonic Holdings CorporationJAパナソニック ホールディングス
Panasonic Holdings Corporation began as Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works, which Konosuke Matsushita set up on 7 March 1918. According to the company's history, Matsushita moved from a tiny dwelling into a larger two-storey house and turned the three ground-floor rooms into a workshop; the staff were three, Matsushita, 23, his wife Mumeno, 22, and her brother Toshio Iue, 15. The first product was an improved attachment plug. The business became Matsushita Electric Manufacturing Works in 1929 and was incorporated in 1935 as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.; on 1 October 2008 it was renamed Panasonic Corporation and its brand unified worldwide as Panasonic. Since 1 April 2022 its operating companies have sat under the holding company Panasonic Holdings.
A company in the format camps: from VHS to Blu-ray
Matsushita turns up again and again in this site's storage-media entries as one of the companies backing a format.
| Year | Format | Matsushita's position (source) |
|---|---|---|
| 1976–77 | VHS home video | Victor Company of Japan (JVC) announced its VHS recorder in September 1976, and Matsushita joined the VHS camp (Sony's history). Panasonic's history says the recording format was developed jointly with JVC, then its subsidiary, on the basis of JVC's proposals. It launched its own VHS recorders, the MacLord, in 1977 |
| 1982 | Compact disc | Its history timeline lists a CD player |
| 1996 | DVD | Its history timeline lists a DVD player |
| 2002 | Basic Blu-ray Disc specifications | Established by nine companies including Matsushita Electric Industrial (joint release via Hitachi and others); see Blu-ray |
According to Panasonic's history, President Masaharu Matsushita went to the United States in February 1977 for negotiations that led to a long-term VHS supply agreement with RCA, and by 1983 the company had produced 10 million VCRs. The history says VHS had clearly become the world standard by 1987. The contest with Betamax is left to the Sony entry and the format entries.
JVC itself entered a capital and business alliance with Kenwood in 2007 and in October 2008 came under the two companies' joint holding company, today's JVCKENWOOD.
Assembling and separating
The history timeline also records the events that changed the group's outline.
- 1952: Technical cooperation agreement with Philips of the Netherlands (dissolved in 1993).
- 1971: Shares begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
- 1990: MCA of the US is added to the group (80% of the shares sold to Seagram in 1995).
- 1994: Lithium-ion rechargeable battery.
- 2009: SANYO Electric becomes a consolidated subsidiary; in 2011 Panasonic Electric Works and SANYO become wholly owned.
- 2 December 2024: The share transfer of Panasonic Automotive Systems is completed, and Automotive ceases to be a reportable segment from the year ended March 2026 (financial results).
Key events
- 7 March 1918: Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works opens.
- 1935: Incorporated as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
- September 1976: JVC announces its VHS recorder.
- 1977: The MacLord VHS recorder goes on sale.
- 1990: MCA joins the group.
- 2002: Nine companies establish the basic Blu-ray Disc specifications.
- 1 October 2008: Renamed Panasonic Corporation.
- 2009: SANYO Electric becomes a consolidated subsidiary.
- 1 April 2022: Moves to an operating-company structure under the holding company Panasonic Holdings.
- December 2024: The automotive systems company is deconsolidated.
Key figures
Year ended March 2026 (April 2025 to March 2026), IFRS, from the financial results of 12 May 2026.
- Net sales: ¥8,048.7 billion (-4.8% year on year) / operating profit: ¥236.4 billion (-44.6%)
- Net profit attributable to Panasonic Holdings stockholders: ¥189.5 billion (-48.2%)
| Segment | Sales (incl. intersegment) | Change | Operating profit | Prior year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connect | ¥1,380.3bn | +5% | ¥100.1bn | ¥76.7bn |
| Electric Works | ¥1,160.6bn | +4% | ¥57.7bn | ¥68.5bn |
| HVAC & CC | ¥1,312.4bn | -1% | ¥23.1bn | ¥23.2bn |
| Energy | ¥984.2bn | +13% | ¥69.8bn | ¥120.2bn |
| Industry | ¥1,167.3bn | +8% | ¥40.5bn | ¥43.2bn |
| Smart Life | ¥1,374.2bn | -5% | -¥37.3bn | ¥41.6bn |
Changes are as stated in the financial results. With the organisational change of January 2026 the former Lifestyle segment was split into Electric Works, HVAC & CC and Smart Life, and prior-year figures are restated accordingly.
According to the results, the fall in sales came mainly from deconsolidating the automotive business in the previous year, and the sharp drop in operating profit from restructuring expenses for the group management reform, among other factors. By segment, the growth did not come from home appliances. Connect grew on process automation, including demand for generative-AI servers, and avionics; Energy on energy storage systems for data centres; Industry on capacitors and multi-layer circuit board materials for AI servers. Smart Life, which includes refrigerators, washing machines and TVs, fell to an operating loss of ¥37.3 billion on restructuring costs and weaker demand outside Japan. The company that started with an attachment plug and entered homes with VHS and TVs is now leaning toward selling batteries, electronic components and air conditioning to businesses and data centres.
Appearances
Questions this page answers
- When and how did Panasonic start?
- It began on 7 March 1918, when Konosuke Matsushita moved into a larger two-storey house and set up Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works. The staff were three: Matsushita, 23; his wife Mumeno, 22; and her brother Toshio Iue, 15. The first product was an improved attachment plug. It was incorporated as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. in 1935.
- Did Panasonic develop VHS?
- The VHS recorder was announced in September 1976 by Victor Company of Japan (JVC). Panasonic's history says the recording format was developed jointly with JVC, then a Panasonic subsidiary, on the basis of JVC's proposals. Panasonic launched its own VHS recorders under the MacLord brand in 1977.
- How large is Panasonic's business today?
- For the year ended March 2026 (April 2025 to March 2026, IFRS), net sales were ¥8,048.7 billion (down 4.8%), operating profit ¥236.4 billion (down 44.6%) and net profit attributable to stockholders ¥189.5 billion. The figures reflect the deconsolidation of the automotive business in the previous year and restructuring expenses for the group management reform.
Sources
Primary1918 — Panasonic Group History, Panasonic Holdings（Wayback Machine 保存版）
The opening of Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works on 7 March 1918, its three staff and its first product
PrimaryPanasonic Group's 100-Year Journey — Panasonic Holdings（Wayback Machine 保存版）
Timeline (the 1952 Philips technical tie-up and its 1993 dissolution, 1971 NYSE listing, 1982 CD player, MCA in 1990 and its 1995 sale, 1994 lithium-ion battery, 1996 DVD player, SANYO in 2009 and 2011)
Primary1977 — Panasonic Group History, Panasonic Holdings（Wayback Machine 保存版）
Joint development of VHS based on JVC's proposals, the 1977 MacLord, the long-term supply agreement with RCA, 10 million VCRs produced by 1983
Primary2008 — Panasonic Group History, Panasonic Holdings（Wayback Machine 保存版）
The renaming to Panasonic Corporation and brand unification on 1 October 2008; the 1929 and 1935 names
PrimarySony History 第2章 規格戦争に巻き込まれた秘蔵っ子 — ソニー（Wayback Machine 保存版）
Victor Company of Japan announced its VHS recorder in September 1976; Matsushita was in the VHS camp
Nine companies, Matsushita Electric Industrial among them, establish the basic Blu-ray Disc specifications
Primary沿革 — JVCケンウッド
The 2007 capital and business alliance between JVC and Kenwood and their joint holding company of October 2008
Boilerplate stating that the group switched to an operating company system on 1 April 2022 with Panasonic Holdings as the holding company
Net sales, operating profit and net profit; sales and operating profit for the six segments; the share transfer of Panasonic Automotive Systems on 2 December 2024
TertiaryPanasonic — Wikipedia
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