Samsung merges mobile, consumer electronics units; names new CEOs

Samsung Electronics Co. is merging its mobile and consumer electronics business into a single SET division and is also changing leadership to strengthen its business competitiveness. 

The South Korean company said that the SET division will be led by Jong-Hee Han who has been promoted to the position of chief executive officer (CEO) and Vice-Chairman. Han was earlier the head of the visual display business.  

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Samsung’s DS division will be spearheaded by Kyehyun Kyung, who was also named CEO as part of the reshuffle.  

The DS division is Samsung’s semiconductor business and includes products such as Exynos chips, image sensors, storage and display integrated circuits.  

Samsung has been trying to compete with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and early this year said it will increase investment in foundry businesses to 171 trillion Won (approximately $144 billion).  

According to market researcher Statista, TSMC leads the global semiconductor foundry market with a 53% market share followed by Samsung which accounted for 17.1% of the market in terms of revenue generated in Q3 2021.  

The top 10 semiconductor foundries generated a total of over $ 27 billion in the third quarter.  The change in leadership is an attempt to reinvigorate the semiconductor business.  

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Merging the mobile and other electronics division that includes TVs and other electronics including the Internet of Things (IoT) products is part of the plan to strengthen cooperation between the two business segments.  

“Han is expected to strengthen the synergies among the different businesses in the SET Division and help drive new businesses and technologies,” Samsung said in a press statement.  

Samsung’s mobile business has been more profitable than its consumer electronics segment. During Q3 21, the former reported 3.36 trillion Won (approximately $2.84 billion) in operating profit while the latter reported 760 billion Won (approximately $ 644 million).  

According to Counterpoint Research, Samsung was the leading smartphone brand in the world in Q3 2021 with a market share of 20% and shipped 69.3 million smartphones.