Panasonic Toughbook Notebook Computers Are Lifeline to the World for Mount Everest Climbers Promoting Peace

After three and a half years of planning, ten internationalclimbers, representing seven countries and five faith traditions, areready to scale Mount Everest, the world's tallest mountain, for peace.Panasonic Computer Solutions Company today announced its support ofThe Everest Peace Project (www.everestpeaceproject.org), whichorganizes international, multi-cultural peace climbs on mountainsacross the world. During 65 grueling days between early April andJune, the diverse group of climbers hopes to stand together at thesummit of Mount Everest, more than 29,000 feet above sea level, topromote a global community of peace, teamwork and culturalunderstanding.

During the expedition, the team will use Panasonic(R) Toughbook(R)notebook computers and rugged PDAs to receive weather updates andother critical information via satellite. They will also wirelesslycommunicate with friends and family and post and broadcast dailydispatches, photos and even video from the Mount Everest expedition.Designed to withstand extreme environments, the MIL-STD-810F-testednotebooks* are specially built to survive on one of the toughestplaces in the world. In the course of the climb the team will facehurricane-force winds, extreme cold, ice, snow, sleet and freezingrain.

The vision to assemble a group of people from different culturesand faiths and to climb mountains in the name of peace first came toLance Trumbull, Everest Peace Project founder and expedition leader,while he spent months traveling, climbing and hiking in the Himalayasand mountains of Asia and Russia. Trumbull, a 37-year-old Buddhist andformer student of religion at the University of California atBerkeley, has led the difficult task of planning, fundraising andrecruiting climbers who represent five major faith traditions - Islam,Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism and Hinduism.

"Some people believe that the mountain of fear, distrust andintolerance that is often based on race and religion can't beovercome," says Trumbull. "Our Everest Climb for Peace will providethe world with inspirational stories, pictures and video which portraycourage, friendship and teamwork under some of the most extremeconditions. We'll show the mountain can be conquered, and we'll climbit together."

"At advanced base camp, we'll be breathing only half the oxygenwe're used to at sea level," says Trumbull. "By the time we reach thesummit, we'll be climbing, sleeping and eating at heights that onlyjet liners cruise."

The other nine Peace Climbers on the Mount Everest expedition teaminclude Selebelo Selamolela (South Africa), Gautam Patil (India),Jamie McGuinness (New Zealand), Tonya Riggs (USA), Ali Bushnaq(Palestine), David Yifrah (Israel), Micha Yaniv (Israel), Jerry Price(USA) and Namgyal Sherpa (Nepal).

Selebelo has summited Aconcagua, and he hopes to be the secondblack African to make it to the top of Everest. Bushnaq plans onbecoming the first Palestinian man to summit Everest. Price will be 72years old when he climbs Everest, and if he summits, he'll be theoldest person to ever achieve the feat.

The Everest Peace Project aims to complete peace climbs acrossseven continents and educate children about peace, different peopleand cultures. As part of the of the group's education outreach, theyare encouraging children from around the world to send in poems andessays on what peace means to them. The group has already helped funda library for poor children in Nepal and plans to help build a schoolthrough its educational partner Room to Read, which has built morethan 2,000 libraries and hundreds of schools in Asia.

"We're proud to be the platinum sponsor for this effort," saysRance Poehler, president, Panasonic Computer Solutions Company. "Theteam is taking significant risks to promote international teamwork byuniting the world on the top of the world. They're really puttingtheir hearts and souls on the line and our Toughbooks, the toughestcomputers on Earth, will be with them every step of the way."

The Everest Peace Project will film the climb and make afull-length documentary film about the project. Billy Marchese ofDezart Cinematic will be producing the film. His last Everest film wasreleased in 2001 and it was shown in more than 200 differentcountries. The Everest Peace Project expects the film, tentativelytitled "A Climb for Peace," to be released internationally in thefall.

For daily dispatches during the Everest expedition in spring 2006and for more information on The Everest Peace Project, please visitwww.everestpeaceproject.org or www.panasonic.com/Toughbook.

*The Everest Peace Climbers will be using Panasonic ToughbookCF-29 rugged notebooks and P1 PDAs during the 65-day expedition. Outin the field or down in the dirt, the durable and wireless-readyPanasonic Toughbook 29 is built to take a beating. MIL-STD-810F-testedfor ruggedness, the unit is encased in magnesium alloy, withdurability designed into every seal, hinge and connector. The fullline of durable, reliable Panasonic Toughbooks allow users tocommunicate from remote areas, access databases online and runsophisticated software applications.

Notes to Editors:

Digital photos and video footage of the team's international peaceclimb of Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa during July 2005 are availableupon request. Audio and video feeds during the Everest expedition willbe available for rebroadcast. Interviews with Lance Trumbull, based inSunnyvale, CA, and other team members are possible before or duringthe expedition. If there is interest in covering the story or shootinga segment on location in Tibet, there's limited availability to do sofrom the Everest base camp, if booked in advance of March 25, 2006.

About Panasonic Computer Solutions Company

Panasonic Computer Solutions Company empowers the mobileworkforce. The company is a unit of Panasonic Corporation of NorthAmerica, which is the principal North American subsidiary ofMatsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (NYSE: MC). Panasonic hasdelivered reliable, durable mobile solutions through its Toughbook(R)line of notebook computers for thirteen years and has expanded theboundaries of wireless technology through a broad portfolio ofproducts, ranging from fully rugged, industrial-strength notebookcomputers and tablet PCs to thin and light semi-rugged notebooks. Acore manufacturer, Matsushita and its subsidiaries control the entireprocess of design, manufacture, quality assurance, service andsupport. As a result, Panasonic Toughbooks are known for having thelowest failure rates in the industry. Government, industrial, andcommercial users--from Fortune 1,000 companies to smallbusinesses--rely on solutions from Panasonic, wherever their worktakes them.

All brand and company/product names are trademarks or registeredtrademarks of the respective companies. All specifications are subjectto change without notice. Information on Panasonic's full line ofnotebook PCs for mobile professionals can be obtained by calling800-662-3537 or at http://www.panasonic.com/toughbook.