Will Pioneer Get Out Of Plasma Display?

The Mainichi Shimbun reports yesterday that Pioneer is seeking ties with Matsushita Electric Industries and Hitachi Ltd. in an effort to diversify investment risk and reduce financial burden.

 Pioneer posted a considerable loss of approximately $88.56 million in the PDP operation last year, and there was even a rumor that the Japanese firm would withdraw from the PDP market.

However, given the trend that worldwide demand for PDPs is picking up incrementally, the company seems set to shift its business direction towards joint production with other giants, rather than halting production, the article added. Pioneer is in talks with Matsushita and Hitachi with the aim of expanding production of both panels and TVs.