the reports outside his native Korea were correct, LG is closing its mobile business. With losses continuing to rise and billions of dollars seemingly wasted eccentric handsets, the electronics giant has officially thrown in the towel on its ailing telephony division. In a statement, the company said, “Going forward, LG will continue to leverage its mobile expertise and develop mobility-related technologies such as 6G to help further strengthen competitiveness in other areas of business. ‘activity.”
For now, LG has said its current inventory of phones remains available for sale, and existing devices will continue to receive after-sales support and software updates “for a period that will vary by region.” . The company plans to complete the cessation of its mobile business by the end of July, although it notes that some LG phones may continue to be sold after that date.
Despite its CEOs commitment to straighten out his fortune by 2021, the two LGs Velvet and Wing the devices failed to gain traction with the public. The allure of dual-screen phones (and the promise of roll-up displays) was clearly not enough to entice consumers to part ways with dominant players Apple and Samsung. While the litany of affordable flagships Oneplus and Xiaomi continued to reduce what was left of its market share.
In December, the writing was on the wall for the Korean electronics giant. With its participation in the global telephony market at a meager 1.7 percent, LG announced that it would outsource the design of several of its low and mid-range handsets to third parties. A few months earlier, he had tried to break into the arena of cheap 5G phones with the $ 400. K92.
“The departure of the LG brand from the mobile space may be disappointing to some, but we are in an industry where pivoting and doing what is in the best interests of employees and shareholders is also critically important,” he said. Ken Hong, head of global corporate communications at LG, told Engadget. “As other beloved phone brands have demonstrated before us, this is a numbers game, not a popularity contest.”
Clearly, LG was not ready to give up its smartphone ambitions without a fight. Last month, the Korean newspaper Dong-A Ilbo reported that he was even in talks to sell the company to Volkswagen AG in Germany and Vingroup JSC in Vietnam, but talks ultimately broke down. According to Nikkei Asia, LG’s inability to grow its smartphone business has been influenced at least in part by global semiconductor storage – unlike domestic rival Samsung, LG does not produce its own smartphone chipsets, and supply is limited. has meant that the company has struggled to secure an adequate supply of silicon for future mobile devices.
LG’s full statement can be found below:
LG Electronics Inc. (LG) announced the closure of its mobile business unit. The decision was approved by its board of directors earlier today.
LG’s strategic decision to exit the extremely competitive mobile phone industry will allow the company to focus its resources on growth areas such as electric vehicle components, connected devices, smart homes, robotics, artificial intelligence and business-to-business solutions, as well as platforms and services.
The current inventory of LG phones will continue to be available for sale. LG will provide technical support and software updates to customers of existing mobile products for a period that will vary by region. LG will work with suppliers and business partners throughout the shutdown of the mobile phone business. Details of employment will be determined locally.
Going forward, LG will continue to leverage its mobile expertise and develop mobility-related technologies such as 6G to help further strengthen competitiveness in other business areas. Core technologies developed over two decades of LG’s mobile business operations will also be retained and applied to existing and future products.
The liquidation of the mobile phone business is expected to be completed by July 31, although inventory of some existing models may still be available afterwards. “
Chris Velazco and Richard Lawler contributed to this story.
