Samsung considering shakeup of mobile division in response to sagging profits, sales
With Samsung's profits plummeting last quarter and sales of its flagship Galaxy S5 coming well short of expectations, the South Korean electronics giant is said to be considering changes in its executive team, particularly among the mobile division that competes with Apple's iPhone and iPad.
Citing people familiar with the company's plans, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that current mobile chief and co-CEO J.K. Shin could lose his position as part of the proposed plans. Eyed to potentially fill his position is reportedly B.K. Yoon, head of Samsung's appliance and television division, which could see the company's mobile operations also fall under his control.
Putting Yoon in charge of Samsung's mobile operations is seen as a way for the company to better focus on the "connected home" market. Apple plans to support smart home devices with its HomeKit tools introduced with iOS 8.
Samsung's phone and tablet business has struggled as it attempts to compete both on the high end with Apple, as well as low-end manufacturers like Xiaomi. Last quarter, Samsung's profit crashed 60 percent year over year.
The changes are said to be on the table as part of Samsung's annual internal review process, but come only weeks after the company suffered a 73.9 percent drop in its mobile profits division. During that same quarter, Apple saw its operating profits grow $11.2 billion, or 11.3 percent.
Despite its recent struggles, Samsung is still the second most profitable company in the mobile phone market, according to recent data from Canaccord Genuity. While Apple is estimated to control a whopping 86 percent of the mobile industry's profits, Samsung was estimated to account for 18 percent, with remaining companies actually losing money.
Market watchers believe Samsung's troubles could continue with Apple's entrance into the jumbo-sized "phablet" market this fall with the debut of the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. That device is pitted against Samsung's Galaxy Note series, which has dominated the phablet space for years.
Samsung's struggles also exist despite the fact that the company ships about twice as many smartphones per quarter than Apple does iPhones. For example, in the third quarter of 2014, Apple shipped 39.3 million iPhones, while Samsung shipped 78.1 million smartphones.
According to the Journal, there have been internal problems in Samsung's mobile division, including overly bullish projections for sales of the company's flagship Galaxy S5, which launched earlier this year. The report said that Samsung built about 20 percent more Galaxy S5 units than it did with its predecessor, outpacing demand and leading to "merchandise piling up in warehouses."
Monday's report revealed that sales of the Galaxy S5 were allegedly 40 percent lower than Samsung expected. In total, about 12 million units were said to have been sold in the first three months, compared with 16 million for the Galaxy S4 in the same timeframe.
Citing people familiar with the company's plans, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that current mobile chief and co-CEO J.K. Shin could lose his position as part of the proposed plans. Eyed to potentially fill his position is reportedly B.K. Yoon, head of Samsung's appliance and television division, which could see the company's mobile operations also fall under his control.
Putting Yoon in charge of Samsung's mobile operations is seen as a way for the company to better focus on the "connected home" market. Apple plans to support smart home devices with its HomeKit tools introduced with iOS 8.
Sales of Samsung's flagship Galaxy S5 were said to be 40 percent lower than the company expected.
Samsung's phone and tablet business has struggled as it attempts to compete both on the high end with Apple, as well as low-end manufacturers like Xiaomi. Last quarter, Samsung's profit crashed 60 percent year over year.
The changes are said to be on the table as part of Samsung's annual internal review process, but come only weeks after the company suffered a 73.9 percent drop in its mobile profits division. During that same quarter, Apple saw its operating profits grow $11.2 billion, or 11.3 percent.
Despite its recent struggles, Samsung is still the second most profitable company in the mobile phone market, according to recent data from Canaccord Genuity. While Apple is estimated to control a whopping 86 percent of the mobile industry's profits, Samsung was estimated to account for 18 percent, with remaining companies actually losing money.
Market watchers believe Samsung's troubles could continue with Apple's entrance into the jumbo-sized "phablet" market this fall with the debut of the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus. That device is pitted against Samsung's Galaxy Note series, which has dominated the phablet space for years.
Samsung's struggles also exist despite the fact that the company ships about twice as many smartphones per quarter than Apple does iPhones. For example, in the third quarter of 2014, Apple shipped 39.3 million iPhones, while Samsung shipped 78.1 million smartphones.
According to the Journal, there have been internal problems in Samsung's mobile division, including overly bullish projections for sales of the company's flagship Galaxy S5, which launched earlier this year. The report said that Samsung built about 20 percent more Galaxy S5 units than it did with its predecessor, outpacing demand and leading to "merchandise piling up in warehouses."
Monday's report revealed that sales of the Galaxy S5 were allegedly 40 percent lower than Samsung expected. In total, about 12 million units were said to have been sold in the first three months, compared with 16 million for the Galaxy S4 in the same timeframe.
Comments
I don't want to rejoice too much, but this couldn't have happened to a better company. They're being out-Samsunged by Xiaomi on the low end, and Apple's in the process of eliminating the potential for others to make a profit on the high end.
Result of shakeup > more bandaid-textured phone cases made out of plastic.
Agreed. It is just such a shame Apple still have to use their production facilities.
Samsung is being squeezed from both ends. Apple on one end, and all of the other cheapo phones on the other end! I'm loving it! It's time to tighten the vice and squeeze even harder!
Perhaps Samsung should invest some more billions and make some more attack ads, insulting Apple users. That is an effective strategy and it's been working out great for them.
I was looking for a soundbar this weekend to get for a tv that I have, and I found a really good deal online, but it was for a Samsung soundbar! No way in hell am I giving my money to a company that insults me personally! I'm most likely going to order a Yamaha bar instead, which costs almost twice as much as the Samsung, but money isn't everything!
I know I like to make the "shipped to where? The landfill?" joke every time we talk about shipments, but I'm suspect that may end up being the case if they over-estimate again. Learn from Sony, Nintendo and Apple and low-ball production so that the demand is driven by eBay.
I'm most likely going to order a Yamaha bar instead, which costs almost twice as much as the Samsung, but money isn't everything!
Go Pioneer.
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Home/Speaker+Bar
You can't beat an Andrew Jones design for the price. I have the BS21-LR's he designed and they're absolutely amazing...
Looks like the bar has BT issues, but that's a technical issue, not a sound issue.
Go Pioneer.
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Home/Speaker+Bar
You can't beat an Andrew Jones design for the price. I have the BS21-LR's he designed and they're absolutely amazing...
Looks like the bar has BT issues, but that's a technical issue, not a sound issue.
I like Pioneer, and I've owned a few pioneer things in the past, but this is just for a cheap tv in a room that's not too large. The Yamaha bar I was looking at is around $250 online, but I can get it cheaper at Costco for around $150. I'm not willing to go much higher than that for this particular tv that I have.
I like Pioneer, and I've owned a few pioneer things in the past, but this is just for a cheap tv in a room that's not too large. The Yamaha bar I was looking at is around $250 online, but I can get it cheaper at Costco for around $150. I'm not willing to go much higher than that for this particular tv that I have.
Ah, well, if that's the case, lol, just buy the iLive soundbar CrappiMart sells for like $40 on Black Friday.
So the Galaxy line will go from looking like bandaids to looking like refrigerators?
So with their connected home initiative, a Galaxy "Fridge" can really control a fridge.
Samsung is being squeezed from both ends. Apple on one end, and all of the other cheapo phones on the other end! I'm loving it! It's time to tighten the vice and squeeze even harder!
Perhaps Samsung should invest some more billions and make some more attack ads, insulting Apple users. That is an effective strategy and it's been working out great for them.
I was looking for a soundbar this weekend to get for a tv that I have, and I found a really good deal online, but it was for a Samsung soundbar! No way in hell am I giving my money to a company that insults me personally! I'm most likely going to order a Yamaha bar instead, which costs almost twice as much as the Samsung, but money isn't everything!
Well, if you are referring to Samsung's US attack ads, they should probably continue with that ad campaign. According to the same WJS article, Samsung's S5 sales in the US market is actually up! There is zero evidence that they are being squeezed by Apple though.
I like Pioneer, and I've owned a few pioneer things in the past, but this is just for a cheap tv in a room that's not too large. The Yamaha bar I was looking at is around $250 online, but I can get it cheaper at Costco for around $150. I'm not willing to go much higher than that for this particular tv that I have.
The Costco one may not be the same as the one online or in the store. I have heard in the past that this is the case for some tvs.
Ah, well, if that's the case, lol, just buy the iLive soundbar CrappiMart sells for like $40 on Black Friday.
Refurbished is the way to go for us. For instance, we picked up a refurbished Polk Audio sound bar, from eBay I believe, for less than half of the regular online price. Also, it wasn't one of the newest versions, so it was like one-third the price. There are great deals out there all of the time. Just have to go fishing.
That sound you heard was a thermonuclear detonation
Samsung is being squeezed from both ends. Apple on one end, and all of the other cheapo phones on the other end! I'm loving it! It's time to tighten the vice and squeeze even harder!
Perhaps Samsung should invest some more billions and make some more attack ads, insulting Apple users. That is an effective strategy and it's been working out great for them.
I was looking for a soundbar this weekend to get for a tv that I have, and I found a really good deal online, but it was for a Samsung soundbar! No way in hell am I giving my money to a company that insults me personally! I'm most likely going to order a Yamaha bar instead, which costs almost twice as much as the Samsung, but money isn't everything!
I feel that Samsung insults everyone - the general consumer. You don't portray any consumer or customer in an ad a dolt. It may work for some people, but overall I feel it generally is a negative overall than a positive.