Toshiba Corp., Hitachi Ltd. and Mitsubishi Electric Corp. said Wednesday they will follow the example set by Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. in determining charges for recycling of home appliances.

The three consumer electronics makers said they will charge consumers 2,400 yen to recycle a washing machine, 2,700 yen for a television set, 3,500 yen for an air conditioner and 4,600 yen for a refrigerator -- the same as Matsushita.

A law on recycling appliances will require manufactures to recycle the four types of home appliances at the expense of consumers, beginning in April 2001.

Consumers will also be required to pay to transport discarded appliances.

Sony Corp., Sharp Corp. and Sanyo Electric Co. are expected to set the same recycling charges, as they have formed a recycling network with Hitachi and Mitsubishi.