What you need to know
- LG Electronics is hopeful that its struggling smartphone division will turn profitable by the end of next year.
- The company says it will expand its mobile lineup with new devices with some "wow factors."
- In Q3 2019, LG's smartphone division posted a loss of $135 million.
LG's smartphone business, which has been in the red for quite a long time now, will apparently turn profitable (via The Korea Times) within two years. Speaking to the press at CES 2020 in Las Vegas, LG Electronics CEO Kwon Bong-seok expressed confidence that the company's smartphone business can turnaround by the end of next year. He said:
LG Electronics mobile business is going to be profitable by 2021. I can say we can make that happen as LG Electronics will expand our mobile lineup and steadily release new ones attached with some wow factors to woo consumers.
While the CEO did not reveal any specifics on exactly how LG plans to turn around its smartphone business, he did reveal that the company will be expanding its phone lineup and attracting consumers with some "wow factors."
In the third quarter of 2019, LG's mobile division reported an operating loss of $135 million, which was actually lower than the previous quarter. To boost profitability, LG also moved its smartphone production from South Korea to Vietnam last year.
This year, the company is expected to focus on increasing the sales of its 5G phones. While LG did not release any new phone at CES this year, it is expected to unveil its next flagship phones next month, possibly at the Mobile World Congress 2020 in Barcelona. However, going by the recently leaked renders of the LG G9, it doesn't look like the upcoming flagship will have any "wow factor."
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