Zenith Radio Corp. v. Matsushita Elec. Ind. Co., Ltd.

• Citation: 402 F. Supp. 262
• Decision Date: 07 May 1975
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 74-2451,74-3247 and M.D.L. No. 189.
• Parties: ZENITH RADIO CORPORATION v. MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC INDUSTRIAL CO., LTD., et al. NATIONAL UNION ELECTRIC CORPORATION v. MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC INDUSTRIAL CO., LTD., et al. In re JAPANESE ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS ANTITRUST LITIGATION.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania

402 F. Supp. 262

ZENITH RADIO CORPORATION v. MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC INDUSTRIAL CO., LTD., et al.

NATIONAL UNION ELECTRIC CORPORATION v. MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC INDUSTRIAL CO., LTD., et al.

In re JAPANESE ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS ANTITRUST LITIGATION.

Civ. A. Nos. 74-2451, 74-3247 and M.D.L. No. 189.

United States District Court, E. D. Pennsylvania.

May 7, 1975.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Edwin P. Rome, Blank, Rome, Klaus & Comisky, Philadelphia, Pa., for plaintiffs.

Carl W. Schwarz, Metzger, Noble, Schwarz & Kempler, Washington, D. C., for defendants Hitachi, Ltd. and Hitachi Kaden.

Henry T. Reath, Duane, Morris & Hechscher, Philadelphia, Pa., for defendant MELCO.

A. Paul Victor, Weil, Gotshal & Manges, New York City, for defendants MEI, MET, and MEC.

Peter J. Gartland, Wender, Murase & White, New York City, for defendant Sharp Corp.

Dugald Campbell Brown, Whitman & Ransom, New York City, for defendant Sanyo DENKI.

Irving Jaffe, Acting Asst. Atty. General; Robert E. J. Curran, U. S. Atty.; Andrew P. Vance, Chief, Customs Section; and Velta A. Melnbrencis, Civil Division, Dept. of Justice, for United States, intervenor.

OPINION

HIGGINBOTHAM, District Judge.

                                                             INDEX
                                                                                  Pages
                    INTRODUCTION --------------------------------------------     266-268
                     I. HISTORY OF THE ZENITH ACTION, C. A. NO
                         74-2451 --------------------------------------------     266-267
                    II. HISTORY OF THE NUE ACTION, C.A. NO. 74-3247               267-268
                    FINDINGS OF FACT ----------------------------------------     268-284
                     I. PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS --------------------------     268
                    II. DEFENDANTS' RESPONSES IN THE ZENITH ACTION
                            AS ADOPTED BY THE COURT -------------------------     268-284
                        A. HITACHI LIMITED AND HITACHI KADEN ----------------     268-272
                           1. Corporate Relationships for 1965-1974 ---------     268-270
                              a. Stock Ownership ----------------------------     268-269
                              b. Interlocking Directors and/or Officers -----     269-270
                           2. Sales -----------------------------------------     270
                           3. Contacts --------------------------------------     270-271
                              a. Trademark Use ------------------------------     270-271
                              b. Presence in Pennsylvania -------------------     271
                              c. Corporate Agreements -----------------------     271-272
                        B. SANYO ELECTRIC CO., LTD. (DENKI) -----------------     272-274
                           1. Corporate Relationships -----------------------     272-273
                              a. Stock Ownership ----------------------------     272
                              b. Interlocking Directors and/or Executive
                                   Officers for the period 1971-1974 --------     272-273
                           2. Sales -----------------------------------------     273
                           3. Contacts --------------------------------------     274
                              a. Trademarks ---------------------------------     274
                              b. Presence in Pennsylvania -------------------     274
                              c. Agreements ---------------------------------     274
                

                    C. THE MATSUSHITA GROUP (MEI, MEC, MET)                     274-279
                       1. Corporate Relationships ---------------------------     274-276
                           a. Stock Ownership -------------------------------     274-275
                           b. Interlocking Directors and/or Executive
                              Officers --------------------------------------     275-276
                        2. Sales --------------------------------------------     276-277
                        3. Contacts -----------------------------------------     277-279
                           a. Trademarks ------------------------------------     277
                           b. Presence in Pennsylvania ----------------------     277-278
                           c. Agreements ------------------------------------     278-279
                              1. MEI ----------------------------------------     278-279
                              2. MEC ----------------------------------------     279
                              3. MET ----------------------------------------     279
                        4. Other Jurisdictional Information -----------------     279
                    D. MELCO ------------------------------------------------     279-283
                       1. Corporate Relationships ---------------------------     279-280
                          a. Stock Ownership --------------------------------     279-280
                          b. Interlocking Directors and/or Executive
                             Officers ---------------------------------------     280
                       2. Sales ---------------------------------------------     280-281
                       3. Contacts ------------------------------------------     281-283
                          a. Trademark --------------------------------------     281-282
                          b. Presence in Pennsylvania -----------------------     282-283
                          c. Agreements -------------------------------------     283
                    E. SHARP CORPORATION ------------------------------------     283-284
                       1. Corporate Relationships ---------------------------     283
                          a. Stock Ownership --------------------------------     283
                          b. Interlocking Directors and/or Executive
                                Officers ------------------------------------     283
                       2. Sales ---------------------------------------------     284
                       3. Contacts ------------------------------------------     284
                          a. Trademarks -------------------------------------     284
                          b. Presence in Pennsylvania -----------------------     284
                          c. Agreements -------------------------------------     284
                  III. DEFENDANTS' RESPONSES IN THE NUE ACTION
                            AS ADOPTED BY THE COURT -------------------------     285-288
                    A. HITACHI KADEN ----------------------------------------     285
                       1. Corporate Relationships for 1965-1970 -------------     285
                       2. Sales ---------------------------------------------     285
                       3. Contacts ------------------------------------------     285
                          a. Trademark --------------------------------------     285
                          b. Presence in New Jersey for 1965-1970 -----------     285
                          c. Agreements -------------------------------------     285
                    B. MELCO ------------------------------------------------     285-286
                      1. Corporate Relationships ----------------------------     285
                         a. Stock Ownership ---------------------------------     285
                         b. Interlocking Directors and/or Executive
                              Officers --------------------------------------     285
                

                       2. Sales ---------------------------------------------     285-286
                       3. Contacts ------------------------------------------     286
                          a. Trademark --------------------------------------     286
                          b. Presence in New Jersey -------------------------     286
                          c. Agreements -------------------------------------     286
                    C. DENKI ------------------------------------------------     286-288
                       1. Corporate Relationships ---------------------------     286-287
                          a. Stock Ownership --------------------------------     286
                          b. Interlocking Directors and/or Executive
                               Officers -------------------------------------     286-287
                       2. Sales ---------------------------------------------     287
                       3. Contacts ------------------------------------------     287
                          a. Trademark --------------------------------------     287
                          b. Presence in New Jersey -------------------------     287-288
                          c. Agreements -------------------------------------     288
                  IV. PLAINTIFF'S PROPOSED FINDINGS OF FACT IN
                          THE NUE ACTION AS ADOPTED BY THE
                          COURT ---------------------------------------------     288-309
                    A. HITACHI KADEN ----------------------------------------     288-295
                    B. MELCO ------------------------------------------------     295-303
                    C. DENKI ------------------------------------------------     303-309
                   V.  ADDITIONAL FACTUAL FINDINGS ADOPTED BY
                          THE COURT -----------------------------------------     309-317
                       A. HITACHI LIMITED AND HITACHI KADEN -----------------     309
                       B. DENKI ---------------------------------------------     309-310
                       C. MEI, MEC AND MET ----------------------------------     310-312
                       D. MELCO ---------------------------------------------     312-317
                       E. THE MOVING DEFENDANTS GENERALLY -------------------     317
                   DISCUSSION -----------------------------------------------     317-330
                    I. VENUE ------------------------------------------------     317-328
                   II. JURISDICTION: THE CONSTITUTIONAL TEST ----------------     328-329
                  III. SERVICE OF PROCESS -----------------------------------     329-330
                   CONCLUSION -----------------------------------------------     330
                

INTRODUCTION

I. HISTORY OF THE ZENITH ACTION, CIVIL ACTION NO. 74-2451.

On September 20, 1974, plaintiff Zenith Radio Corporation filed this antitrust action in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, naming twenty-one Japanese and American corporations as defendants. On October 29, 1974, certain of the defendants moved, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407, to transfer this action to the District of New Jersey for consolidated pretrial proceedings with the previously filed case of National Union Electric Corporation v. Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., et al., Civil No. 1706/70. On November 25, 1974, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation transferred the NUE action to this Court. That same day, this Court directed the defendants to file whatever pleadings they intended to file with respect to the complaint on or before January 2, 1975. On that date, eight defendants herein — Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. ("MEI"), Matsushita Electronics Corporation ("MEC"), Matsushita Electric Trading Co., Ltd. ("MET"), Sharp Corporation ("Sharp"), Hitachi, Ltd. ("Limited"), Hitachi Kaden Hanbai Kabushiki Kaisha ("Kaden"), Mitsubishi Electric...