OSAKA, Japan. - Wednesday, April 1st 2015 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Panasonic Corporation announced today that it will celebrate the 10th anniversary of eneloop on a global scale in November 2015. In commemoration of this anniversary, the company will hold a campaign for one year from April 1, 2015 to March 31, 2016. The total number of countries in which eneloop batteries are sold is expected to exceed 80 within the fiscal year ending March 31, 2016. Panasonic will offer an easily accessible website and hold events for the anniversary, aiming to help customers use eneloop more conveniently and pleasantly regardless of their past experience with the product and whatever language they speak. On April 1, 2015, the company will open a special website in 13 languages to celebrate the 10th anniversary of eneloop to introduce product features and sales outlets in each country. Also, as part of the campaign, a competition for hand drawings will be held, and 100 winners will be selected to receive one-of-a-kind*1 soft toys made based on their submissions. In addition, various street events will be held sequentially in countries where eneloop batteries are sold.

Under the concept “For Sustainable Lifestyle,” eneloop batteries were released as products that combine the merits of both rechargeable and dry batteries. Specifically, eneloop batteries can be recharged and used repeatedly. They can also be used immediately after purchase and even after storage for a long period of time. Since the first release of AA size eneloop batteries on November 14, 2005, the eneloop series has been expanded and its performance enhanced through technological innovation. As a result, total shipment of the product reached 330 million units as of January 2015. Thanks to excellent self-discharge control technology, a fully recharged eneloop battery retains about 90% of its capacity after a one year storage period and about 70% after as long as five years*2, which is the longest retaining rate period recorded in the industry*3. They can therefore be used immediately at any time providing similar levels of convenience to conventional dry batteries. Moreover, due to improvements made in battery materials, eneloop batteries can be reused up to about 2,100 times, the highest frequency of reuse in the industry*4. In customer satisfaction surveys that Panasonic conducted on this environment-friendly battery in Germany, China, Australia, Thailand, Indonesia and Brazil, 90% or more of respondents answered that they were satisfied with the product*5.

Outline of the special website Name of the website: Special website to celebrate the 10th anniversary of eneloop URL: http://eneloop.com/10th/ Period: April 1, 2015 to March 31, 2016 Languages: 13 languages

English, simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese, German, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Polish, Indonesian, Italian, Vietnamese, Thai and Japanese*6

Content of the website:

    Introduction of campaign events - Competition The winners will receive one-of-a-kind in the world soft toys. Application period is April 1, 2015 to January 31, 2016 in Japan time. - Street events The event will be held in countries where eneloop batteries are sold.
    Introduction of eneloop - 10-year history - The concept and features - Sales outlets in each country

*1 In this competition for original hand drawings, winners will receive one-of-a-kind soft toys order-made by an expert workshop based on their submitted drawings. *2 Retained capacity estimated based on the IEC61951-2(7.3.2) testing conditions. If fully recharged eneloop and eneloop lite batteries are stored at 20 degrees Celsius for five years, they will retain about 70% of their energy (excluding eneloop pro batteries). Please note that the batteries might not be usable or may only be usable for a shorter time period depending upon storage conditions and the devices in which they are used. *3 For AA-size nickel-metal-hydride batteries with a 2,000 mAh capacity sold in the market; as of March 2015; surveyed by Panasonic *4 Lifespan estimated based on IEC61951-2(7.5.1.3) test conditions. The batteries may not be usable up to the stated level depending upon the devices in which they are used and use conditions. *5 According to the results of the online survey of eneloop purchasers conducted by Panasonic in August 2014 (N= 800 purchasers in each of the targeted countries) *6 The content of the Japanese website is only about introductions of a competition for original hand drawings and award one-of-a-kind soft toys made based on winners’ submissions.

Related websites Global website for eneloop (in English) http://eneloop.com Facebook page for eneloop: “eneloop global” (in English and Japanese) https://facebook.com/eneloop/ eneloop video: eneloop Youtube Channel https://www.youtube.com/eneloopglobal/

About Panasonic Panasonic Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development and engineering of electronic technologies and solutions for customers in residential, non-residential, mobility and personal applications. Since its founding in 1918, the company has expanded globally and now operates around 500 consolidated companies worldwide, recording consolidated net sales of 7.74 trillion yen for the year ended March 31, 2014. Committed to pursuing new value through innovation across divisional lines, the company strives to create a better life and a better world for its customers. For more information about Panasonic, please visit the company's website at http://panasonic.net/.

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Contacts

Panasonic Corporation

Global Communication Group

Public Relations Office

+81-3-3574-5729

eneloop10th@ml.jp.panasonic.com

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