Matsushita Replaces Top Executives of U.S. Unit Jun 30, 2004

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Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd., a leading consumer electronics maker, announced that it has named two new executives to replace top leadership of its wide-ranging U.S. operations.

Matsushita, best known for its Panasonic brand, said it named Yoshihiko "Yoshi" Yamada as chairman and chief executive of Matsushita Electric Corp. of America, which is based in Secaucus, NJ, U.S. He replaces Don Iwatani, who will become executive officer for international affairs in Matsushita Electric's headquarters and also will hold the position of director of the company's Global Strategy Research Institute in Osaka.

Mr. Yamada will oversee Panasonic's North America consumer, business-to-business, and industrial component sales, as well as research and development and manufacturing operations. Previously, he had run businesses supplying components to the U.S. computer industry. He rose to become director of the company's personal computer division and oversaw the introduction of Panasonic's line of ToughBook notebooks in the 1990s.

In addition, Masaru "Martin" Kono was named president and chief operating officer of Panasonic Consumer Electronics Co. In his new position, Mr. Kono will report directly to Yamada.

Mr. Kono previously was executive vice president of Panasonic Automotive Systems Co. of America based in Southfield, MI, U.S. He is replacing Hideatsu "Andy" Takani, who also held his position from 2000. Mr. Takani will return to Japan to become deputy director of Matsushita Electric's Panasonic Corporate Marketing unit. (Reuters)

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