After several years of losses, the South Korean company will stop making smartphones. The multinational will focus on growing sectors such as electric vehicles and the Internet of Things
The red numbers have led LG to say goodbye to the mobile phone business after two decades on the scene. After several years of losses, the South Korean company will stop manufacturing smartphones, a sector of which it became one of the world references with its terminals with Android operating system. Those of Seoul had lost the pulse in the last exercises and in the presentation of their results in January they accumulated losses for 4,434 million dollars. According to data from Counterpoint Research, the firm placed 24.7 million phones in 2020, 13% less than the previous year. The rumors have been confirmed this Monday and the decision will be effective on July 31. With the closure of the mobile division, a classic leaves the LG G3 as the last great terminal or the risk of new formats such as the double screen or the extravagant Wing with its rotating screen.
The multinational was one of the few firms that presented their novelties each edition at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona , in which they had one of the largest pavilions. Last year they were the first to leave the world’s largest mobile technology fair because of the coronavirus , unintentionally unleashing an avalanche effect for the rest of the companies.
Those in Seoul say that this exit from the market will allow them to focus on growth sectors such as electric vehicles and the Internet of Things. The company will not launch new models of smartphones on the market, although its already produced phones will continue to be available for purchase and with all current third-party application functionalities intact.
In addition, LG will continue to support users of mobile products, providing regular after-sales customer service and respecting the current policy for software and operating system updates. In addition, the warranty stipulated for users will be maintained and accessories and service parts will continue to be provided for existing models.
Despite this, LG will continue to develop technologies related to the mobile sector, such as 6G, to strengthen its competitiveness in other business areas. “All major technologies developed during LG’s two decades of operations in the mobile sector will be maintained and applied to current and future products,” the company underlined in a statement. LG is a leader in the manufacture of OLED screens and one of its star products in consumer technology is the television, where its business continues to grow and only Samsung is direct competition.
