CES 2020: LG's smartphone division to profit in 2021, promises CEO

The CEO of LG Electronics, Brian Kwon, said during a conference at the CES 2020 (Consumer Electronics Show) that the company's mobile market will change in 2021, becoming profitable again.

“LG Electronics' mobile business will be profitable until 2021. I can say that we can make this happen as LG Electronics will expand its mobile line and launch new 'wow' factor handsets to attract consumers,”

said Brian Kwon

Kwon did not specify any information, just saying that he will launch an innovative product, even if its manufacture "takes more time than the competitors".

The statement takes place in a period not very favorable for the company, considering that it has been “in the red” since the second half of 2015 in the smartphone segment.

Recently, the LG moved its production from Vietnam to South Korea, looking for ways to lower production costs for its mid-range and high-end phones.

LG's mobile scenario is still not very optimistic

Unlike the other segments of the company, the mobile division has been suffering from successive revenue losses since 2017. second half of 2019, there was a loss of 75% in relation to the first half, with losses “in the range” of US$ 268 million, and 21,3% lower when compared to the same period of the previous year.

According to the tax report released by the LG at the time, the drop was due to the global competitiveness in the mobile market, especially the Chinese one (likely reference to Xiaomi), what “applies an aggressive pricing policy and ends up winning over the consumer”.

It was precisely under these circumstances that Brian Kwon took over as CEO of LG Electronics in November 2019, in an attempt by the company to “leverage” this sector. Until then, he was the director of the company's mobile devices division.

TV that “rolls” was also the subject of CES 2020

The CEO also took the opportunity to comment on the 65 inch OLED TV that rolls up, justifying why it will arrive in the third quarter of 2020. The initial idea was for sales to start in 2019, but they postponed it to ensure that sales were successful.

“The roll-up TV was a high-cost product, so we wanted to be sure of its reliability before putting it up for sale”

said kwon

These televisions innovate by having a box similar to a small rack to contain the flexible screen, which is displayed only when the user requests it. according to the LG, the “scrollable” TV is capable of withstanding up to 50.000 moves both up and down.

Source: ZDNet e Engadget