14 DAY TRIAL // Despite the Galaxy Note 7 recall and discontinuation last year, Samsung managed to bounce back and recorded the best quarter in three years. Company earnings in Q4 2016 rose by over 50% compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
Samsung recorded $7.92 billion in operating profit during the last quarter of 2016, mainly due to its V-NAN memory and OLED display divisions. In addition, the mobile division recorded gains year over year, partly due to sales of the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, as well as mid-to-low-end models. Samsung’s mobile business recorded a year-on-year profit increase of 4% to $2 billion.
The device maker has also mentioned that customers are growingly interested in buying larger and more expensive UHD television sets, while the semiconductor division is also expected to post gains in the current year. The South Korean company made some predictions for the coming quarters.
Continued innovations in mobile software and hardware for 2017
Samsung’s mobile division is expected to continue working on equipping smartphones with innovative software and hardware components in 2017. The company will also focus extensively on consumer safety and it already announced a set of measures for testing batteries in upcoming phones.
The global smartphone market is said to slow down this year, but Samsung expects new services like artificial intelligence (AI) to differentiate company products from other smartphones on the market. Indeed, many smartphone makers will equip their upcoming flagships with AI virtual assistants, including LG and even Nokia.
Samsung expects its flagship phones to dominate the market, while mid-to-low-end smartphones to be equipped with innovative features, previously found in premium devices. The company expects increased shipments of Galaxy A and J series.
The report mentions that Samsung has increased marketing expenses in the mobile business, which is one of the reasons overall earnings might decline in the first quarter of 2017. Nonetheless, sales of its upcoming Galaxy S8 should make up for lower earnings in Q1.
