Samsung Galaxy S5 Under-Sold With Excess Inventory, Executive Shake-Up Possible
Samsung to date hasn't sold as many Galaxy S5 smartphones as it hoped, and as a result of the flagship device not meeting sales expectations, there could be a major shakeup among management at the South Korean electronics firm. Should that happen, nobody at Samsung would be untouchable, not even co-CEO and mobile boss J.K. Shin, who navigated Samsung through its rapid rise in the smartphone wars, as well as its more recent decline.
It's being reported that Samsung sold just 12 million Galaxy S5 devices during its first three months on the market, which is around 4 million fewer than its predecessor (Galaxy S4) and around 40 percent less than expected. Citing "people familiar with the matter," The Wall Street Journal points to the U.S. market as the only one where the Galaxy S5 outsold the Galaxy S4. That also happens to be Samsung's biggest market.
China is Samsung's second biggest market in terms of revenue, and over there, Galaxy S5 sales were down around 50 percent compared to the Galaxy S4 during the first six months that it was on sale.
That being the case, the 58-year-old Mr. Shin could lose his co-CEO title. In that scenario, another co-CEO, B.K. Yoon, could add control of the mobile division to his current duties, which include overseeing Samsung's home appliance and television businesses. Should Samsung go in that direction, Mr. Yoon would make a push to promote connected home technologies.
It's being reported that Samsung sold just 12 million Galaxy S5 devices during its first three months on the market, which is around 4 million fewer than its predecessor (Galaxy S4) and around 40 percent less than expected. Citing "people familiar with the matter," The Wall Street Journal points to the U.S. market as the only one where the Galaxy S5 outsold the Galaxy S4. That also happens to be Samsung's biggest market.
China is Samsung's second biggest market in terms of revenue, and over there, Galaxy S5 sales were down around 50 percent compared to the Galaxy S4 during the first six months that it was on sale.
That being the case, the 58-year-old Mr. Shin could lose his co-CEO title. In that scenario, another co-CEO, B.K. Yoon, could add control of the mobile division to his current duties, which include overseeing Samsung's home appliance and television businesses. Should Samsung go in that direction, Mr. Yoon would make a push to promote connected home technologies.
