Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., best known for its Panasonic brand, today announced that the company will change its company name to 'Panasonic Corporation' effective October 1, 2008. The company will also unify its corporate brands to the 'Panasonic' brand across the world.

The change, that was approved at the company's extraordinary board meeting today, will be submitted for and subject to approval at its ordinary general meeting of shareholders to be held in late June this year.

Upon a company name change, the company will undertake its brand name change from the 'National' brand, which is used for home appliances and housing equipment in Japan, to the 'Panasonic' brand by the end of fiscal 2010, ending March 31, 2010. Subsequently, the 'National' brand will be abandoned and the corporate brands in Japan will be unified to the 'Panasonic' Brand.

The company has been using a company name 'Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.' since 1935, following its earlier names 'Matsushita Electric Manufacturing Works' since 1929 and 'Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works' since 1918 when it was first established. While the company was using 'National' and 'Panasonic' brand names over the period, it decided in 2003 to unify a global brand into 'Panasonic' with a brand slogan 'Panasonic ideas for life.'

The timing to change the company name and unify its global brand coincides with its 90th anniversary this year. At the same time, some group companies which currently use 'Matsushita' or 'National' in their names will also change their company names using 'Panasonic.'

"The company name change and brand unification is a bold step forward to make the company a truly global corporation, in which its corporate value can be enhanced with united efforts by all the employees focused on the 'Panasonic' brand worldwide," the company said in a statement.