Live from Sanyo's press conference
We're almost ready to roll with Sanyo; everyone's feeling the love thanks to the "Think GAIA" slogan displayed across the backdrop.
2:03PM PST – Chairperson Tomoyo Nonaka takes the podium.
2:09PM – Ms. Nonaka's slide deck points out that Sanyo has two hundred and ninety four subsidiaries. Wow!
2:10PM – Just over 51 percent of Sanyo's sales are outside its domestic market.
2:13PM – Sanyo's new corporate vision is "Think GAIA: For Life and the Earth." Video rolls... three aspects of Think GAIA. "Blue Planet" program addresses environmental issues. "Genesis III" program to create clean energy. "Lifestyle" program for a harmonious society. (We're a little confused.)
2:17PM – Nonaka makes mention of "An Inconvenient Truth." Points out that Sanyo is a leading provider of cutting edge environment and energy-related products.
2:18PM – Goes though "Sanyo Evolution" project to revitalize company's performance.
2:21PM – Think GAIA aims to realize zero emission, 100 percent recycling, and a detoxified product cycle.
2:23PM – "What can Sanyo do for Life and the Planet?" AQUA "New Style Laundry" washing machine cited as a product to reduce water consumption.
2:25PM – AQUA's "Aqualoop" recycles water using ozone within the washing machine, results in 80 percent reduction in water use. "Gaia, the goddess, would be delighted to have such a washing machine."
2:27PM – Sanyo working with Indonesian government to provide safe drinking water to its population on remote islands without water grids.
2:28PM – Uh oh, bird flu! 60 percent fatality rate! Sanyo's water purification systems can deactivate over 99 percent of bird flu virus.
2:29PM – Moving on now from water to energy. Eneloop (released November 2005 — Sanyo's just using it as an example of its commitment to Gaia, we think) is world's first ready-to-use rechargeable battery. Can be recharged 1000 times. After a year of storage, 85 percent of an Eneloop battery's energy is still stored.
2:31PM – An Eneloop battery in a camera can take 4.4 times as many pictures on a charge as a dry cell battery.
2:34PM – Solar charger for Eneloop mentioned.
2:35PM – A5520SAII, SA800i phones briefly mentioned with GPS for children.
2:36PM – Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2 camcorder. "For Your Precious Memory." Many, many products are listed as being part of the "Xacti Universe" — mobile phones (the M1 is shown), projectors, camcorders, etc.
2:38PM – Presentation is over, Q&A with Nonaka.
And that's a wrap! See some goodies from the conference below.