An estimated shipment of more than 60 million smartphones was the main driver behind a record quarterly operating profit of 8.84 trillion Won (around $8.12 billion) for Samsung.
The company, which also posted an 18 percent rise in revenues to 56.06 trillion Won ($51.7 billion) across Q4 2012, revealed its mobile communications business now accounts for more than half of its sales, rising by 4 percent sequentially to 27.23 trillion Won ($25.1 billion).
Though Samsung doesn't publish official shipment or sales figures, analysts have coupled the firm's quarterly results by by estimating smartphone shipments were likely in the region of 63 million units, comfortably ahead of Apple's 47.8 million iPhones.
Looking ahead
"Despite uncertainties in Europe and concerns over the US fiscal cliff creating a difficult business environment, we did our best this quarter to achieve strong earnings based on a strategic focus on differentiated and high value-added products as well as our technological competitiveness," said senior VP and head of investor relations Robert Yi.
"Heading into this year, we are expecting a slow recovery in the component business due to reduced capital expenditures, while competition in the set business will intensify further as demand slows and the mid- to low-end market expands."
Indeed, it appears to be Samsung's belief that smartphone sales across the board are unlikely to hold as strong during the first few months of 2013.
For the first time since the start of the financial crisis, the company is to put a limit on the amount of cash it spends on expansion during the coming year, with 2013 set to be a tough ride for those at the top of the tree as well as those at the bottom.
In a separate announcement, Strategy Analytics claims Samsung accounted for more than 25 percent of all mobile devices shipped in 2012 smartphones and feature phones combined ahead of Nokia on 21.3 percent and Apple on 8.6 percent.
[source: Samsung]
News
With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.
Related Articles
Interview
Apr 9th, 2024
Saga CEO Rebecca Liao on the launch of publishing division and mass market web3 games
Top Stories
Feature
May 17th, 2024
New release roundup: The best new mobile games from a battle royale to a console classic remake
Feature
May 16th, 2024
Behind the scenes: How adding sandwich offers to an idle merge game boosted three metrics at once
Events
Digital Dragons | Europe | May 19th |
GamesBeat Summit 2024 | North America | May 20th |
Mobidictum Meetup Tallinn May 2024 | Europe | May 21st |
Nordic Game Spring 2024 | Nordic | May 21st |
Impact 2024 - Indie Games | May 23rd | |
Morocco Gaming Expo | Africa | May 24th |
MomoCon 2024 | North America | May 24th |
Unreal Fest Gold Coast 2024 | Australasia | May 29th |
Popular Stories
Feature
May 14th, 2024
53 top mobile games in soft launch: Squad Busters, Battle Guys: Royale, Plants vs. Zombies 3, LEGO Hill Climb Adventures, and more
Feature
May 13th, 2024
Hot Five: Dubai's new Gaming Visa, April's mobile game charts, and Xbox studio closures
Feature
May 14th, 2024