Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (SEC; stylized as SΛMSUNG; Korean: 삼성전자; RR: Samseong Jeonja; lit. Tristar Electronics) is a South Korean multinational major appliance and consumer electronics corporation founded on 13 January 1969 and headquartered in Yeongtong District, Suwon, South Korea.[1] It is currently the pinnacle of the Samsung chaebol, accounting for 70% of the group's revenue in 2012,[4] and has played a key role in the group's corporate governance due to cross ownership.[5] It is majority-owned by foreign investors.[6][7]
As of 2019, Samsung Electronics is the world's second-largest technology company by revenue, and its market capitalization stood at US$520.65 billion, the 12th largest in the world.[8] It became the world's largest manufacturer of smartphones in 2024.[9][10][11][12] Samsung is known most notably for its Samsung Galaxy brand consisting of phones such as its flagship Galaxy S series, popular midrange Galaxy A series as well as the premium Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Flip series. It has been the largest television manufacturer since 2006,[13] both of which include related software and services like Samsung Pay and TV Plus. The company pioneered the phablet form factor with the Galaxy Note family.[14] Samsung is also a major vendor of washing machines, refrigerators, computer monitors and soundbars.[15]
Samsung Electronics is also a major manufacturer of electronic components such as lithium-ion batteries, semiconductors, image sensors, camera modules, and displays for clients such as Apple, Sony, HTC, and Nokia.[16][17] It is also the world's largest semiconductor memory manufacturer[18] and from 2017 to 2018, was the largest semiconductor company in the world, briefly dethroning Intel, the decades-long champion.[19] Samsung Electronics has assembly plants and sales networks in 76 countries and employs more than 260,000 people.[20]
History
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1969–1987: early years
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Samsung Electric Industries was established as an industrial part of Samsung Group on 13 January 1969 in Suwon, South Korea.[21] At the time, Samsung Group was known to the South Korean public as a trading company specialized in fertilizers and sweeteners. Despite the lack of technology and resources, falling shorter even than the domestic competitors, Samsung Group improved its footing in the manufacturing industry by cooperating with the Japanese companies, a decision that led to a significant amount of anti-Japanese public outcry and huge backlashes from the competitors fearing the outright subordination of the industry by the Japanese. The strategy was able to take off only after the government and Samsung declared that the company would exclusively focus on exports. Toshio Iue, the founder of Sanyo, played a role as an advisor to Lee Byung-chul, Samsung's founder, who was a novice in the electronics business. In December of the same year, Samsung Electric established a joint venture named Samsung-Sanyo Electric with Sanyo and Sumitomo Corporation. This is the direct predecessor of today's Samsung Electronics.[22]
The joint venture's early products were electronic and electrical appliances including televisions, calculators, refrigerators, air conditioners, and washing machines. In 1970, Samsung established the joint venture Samsung-NEC with Japan's NEC Corporation and Sumitomo Corporation to manufacture home appliances and audiovisual devices. Samsung-NEC later became Samsung SDI, the group's display and battery business unit. In 1973, Samsung and Sanyo created Samsung-Sanyo Parts, the predecessor of Samsung Electro-Mechanics. By 1981, Samsung Electric had manufactured over 10 million black-and-white televisions.
In 1974, Samsung Group expanded into the semiconductor business by acquiring Korea Semiconductor, which was on the verge of bankruptcy while building one of the first chip-making facilities in the country at the time. Soon after, Korea Telecommunications, an electronic switching system producer and a Samsung Group company, took over the semiconductor business and became Samsung Semiconductor & Communications.[23]
In February 1983, Lee, along with the board of the Samsung industry and corporation agreement and help by sponsoring the event, made an announcement later dubbed the "Tokyo declaration", in which he declared that Samsung intended to become a dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) vendor. One year later, Samsung announced that it had successfully developed a 64 kb DRAM, reducing the technological gap between the companies from first-world countries and the young electronics maker from more than a decade to approximately four years. In the process, Samsung used technologies imported from Micron Technology of the U.S. for the development of DRAM and Sharp Corporation of Japan for its SRAM and ROM.[24] In 1988, Samsung Electric Industries merged with Samsung Semiconductor & Communications to form Samsung Electronics,[25] as before that, they had not been one company and had not been a leading corporation together, but they were not rivals, as they had been in talks for a time until they finally merged.
In the 1980s and early 1990s, Samsung sold personal computers under the Leading Technology brand. However, the equipment was manufactured by Samsung, and the FCC filings from this period typically refer to Samsung products.[26]
1988–1995: consumer struggles
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In 1988, Samsung Electronics launched its first mobile phone in the South Korean market.[27] Sales were initially poor, and by the early 1990s, Motorola held a market share of over 60 percent in the country's mobile phone market compared to just 10 percent for Samsung.[27] Samsung's mobile phone division also struggled with poor quality and inferior[clarification needed] products until the mid-1990s, and exit from the sector was a frequent topic of discussion within the company.[28]
1995–2008: component manufacturing and design strategy
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Lee Kun-Hee decided that Samsung needed to change its strategy. The company shelved the production of many under-selling product lines and instead pursued a process of designing and manufacturing components and investing in new technologies for other companies. In addition, Samsung outlined a 10-year plan to shrug off its image as a "budget brand" and to challenge Sony as the world's largest consumer electronics manufacturer. It was hoped that, in this way, Samsung would gain an understanding of how products are made and give a technological lead sometime in the future. This patient vertical integration strategy of manufacturing components has borne fruit for Samsung in the late 2000s.[29]
A complementary brand leadership strategy was also initiated by chairman Lee when he declared 1996 to be the "Year of Design Revolution" at Samsung. His objective was to build Samsung design capabilities as a competitive asset and transform the company into a global brand-design leader. However, this effort required major changes in corporate culture, processes, and systems. By integrating a comprehensive design management system and strategy into the corporate culture, Samsung was successful in developing an award-winning product design portfolio by the late 1990s, resulting in significant brand equity growth.[30][31][32]
As Samsung shifted away from consumer markets, the company devised a plan to sponsor major sporting events. One such sponsorship was for the 1998 Winter Olympics held in Nagano, Japan.[33] As a chaebol, Samsung Group wielded wealth that allowed the company to invest and develop new technology rather than build products at a level that would not have a detrimental impact on Samsung's finances.[34]
Samsung had a number of technological breakthroughs, particularly in the field of memory which are commonplace in most electrical products today. This includes the world's first 64 MB DRAM in 1992, 256 MB DRAM in 1994, and 1 GB DRAM in 1996.[35] In 2004, Samsung developed the world's first 8 GB NAND flash memory chip, and a manufacturing deal was struck with Apple in 2005. A deal to supply Apple with memory chips was sealed in 2005, and Samsung remains a key supplier of Apple components as of October 2013, manufacturing the A7 processors inside the iPhone 5S model.[36][37]
2008–present
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From 2000 to 2003, Samsung maintained a net earnings growth of over 5%, even as 16 of South Korea's 30 largest companies collapsed following a financial crisis.[38][39] In 2005, Samsung surpassed its Japanese rival, Sony, for the first time, becoming the 20th most popular global consumer brand according to Interbrand rankings.[40] In 2007, Samsung overtook Motorola to become the world's second-largest smartphone manufacturer.[41] By 2009, Samsung achieved $117bn in revenue, overtaking Hewlett-Packard to become the world's largest technology company by sales.[42]
However, Samsung faced legal challenges in 2009 and 2010 when the U.S. and the EU fined the company—along with other memory chip manufacturers—for involvement in a price-fixing scheme that occurred between 1999 and 2002.[43][44][45] In 2010, Samsung was granted immunity from prosecution by the EU for acting as an informant during the investigation into the LCD price-fixing cartel, leading to the implication of other companies, including LG Display and HannStar.[46][47]
Despite its continuous growth, Samsung has been portrayed as financially insecure. In 2010, after returning from temporary retirement, chairman Lee Kun-hee expressed concern about the company's future, stating, "Samsung Electronics' future is not guaranteed, as most of our flagship products will be obsolete within ten years."[48] Samsung has since set ambitious goals, aiming for $400bn in annual revenue within a decade, with 24 global research and development centers contributing to these efforts.[citation needed]
In 2011, Samsung sold its hard disk drive (HDD) operations to Seagate Technology for $1.4 billion in cash and stock.[49] In 2012, Kwon Oh-hyun was appointed CEO of Samsung Electronics. He announced his resignation in 2017, citing an "unprecedented crisis." His departure signaled the transition to a leadership structure with three co-CEOs, which lasted until 2021, when Kyung Kye-Hyun and Han Jong-hee were appointed as new CEOs after a company-wide reorganization.[50]
In 2014, Samsung made headlines by introducing the Samsung Galaxy S4, a new entry in its Galaxy smartphone series, and successfully tested enhanced 5G technology.[51] From 2014 onward, Samsung expanded its presence in technology markets. In April 2014, Samsung launched the Galaxy S5, followed by the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge in 2015, both of which featured a significant redesign and introduced the concept of curved screens. The same year, Samsung also entered the rapidly growing Internet of Things (IoT) market by acquiring the smart home company SmartThings.[52]
In 2016, Samsung faced one of its most publicized crises when its Galaxy Note 7 devices began to overheat and catch fire due to defective batteries. This led to a global recall of the product and a temporary halt in production. Despite the setback, Samsung recovered by launching successful products such as the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 in 2017, which helped restore consumer confidence. During this time, Samsung continued its push into new markets. In November 2016, it announced its acquisition of Harman International Industries for $8bn, marking a major step into the automotive technology sector, particularly in connected car solutions.[53]
In 2017, Samsung reported record profits driven by its semiconductor business, particularly memory chips. By 2018, the company had solidified its position as one of the leading global manufacturers of semiconductors, overtaking Intel as the world's largest semiconductor supplier.[54] In 2021, Samsung announced plans to invest $17bn to build a new semiconductor manufacturing facility in Taylor, Texas, part of its strategy to expand its chip production capabilities amid the global semiconductor shortage.[55]
On 20 May 2022, US President Joe Biden met with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol at the Samsung Electronics' semiconductor complex in Pyeongtaek, South Korea. The two leaders spoke of the importance of the semiconductor industry and on strengthening the technological innovations between the two countries.[56]
At CES 2024, Samsung demonstrated Ballie, an AI-powered home robot designed to assist with daily tasks, monitor pets, and integrate with smart home appliances.[57] Samsung has been working to meet sustainability goals and reduce its environmental impact. In 2023, the company announced a partnership with British Gas to integrate its services into Samsung's SmartThings app, helping users reduce energy consumption through smarter home management. As part of the partnership, British Gas began offering Samsung's energy-efficient heat pumps to support the UK's 2050 net-zero goals.[58] In 2024, Samsung continues to be a leader in consumer electronics, semiconductors, and AI development, shaping technology through its innovations in smart homes, connected devices, and sustainable energy solutions.
Samsung Electronics has become the largest shareholder of South Korea's Rainbow Robotics in 2025.[59] On 25 March 2025, Samsung Electronics co-CEO Han Jong-hee died from a heart attack at the age of 63.[60] This resulted in Jun Young-hyun, who was appointed a CEO just a week before Han Jong-hee's death, becoming the company's sole leader.[61][62]
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