Panasonic announces record 103-inch plasma TV

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., the maker of Panasonic brand electronics, has announced that it hoped to start selling the world's largest plasma screen television by early next year.

The 103-inch television set would be larger than a double matress, measuring 2.4 metres long by 1.4 metres high, and weigh 215 kilograms - almost as much as an upright piano.

Maysushita has not set the price of the huge plasma screen yet, but it's 65-inch model (the largest currently available) sells for around $7500 in Japan.

The plasma panel used for the new 103-inch TV will be one inch larger measured diagonally than the 102-inch plasma screen developed by rival TV manufacturer Samsung, which is not yet available commercially.

Matsushita is the world's largest manufacturer of plasma display panel (PDP) TVs.