It is heard that Samsung Electronics is planning to manufacture 311 million Smartphones in 2020 and it is estimated that about 60 million of them will be manufactured by means of ODM (Original Development Manufacturing). Although the size of entire production of Smartphones in 2020 is not much different from that of 2019, the size of production of Smartphones by means of ODM in 2020 will be higher than that of 2019. It seems that Samsung Electronics has made such decision as the Smartphone market has become stagnant. Because Huawei, which is chasing after Samsung Electronics for the title of the biggest Smartphone manufacturer in the world, is looking to ship 300 million Smartphones in 2020, it will be interesting to see which of the two companies will ship the most Smartphones in 2020.
According to the industry, Samsung Electronics is planning to manufacture 311 million Smartphones in 2020. As a result, other relevant businesses are also setting up their plans for 2020 according to Samsung Electronics’ plan.
311 million Smartphones is slightly more than the size of entire production of Smartphones for this year. It is heard that Samsung Electronics has produced slightly more than 300 million Smartphones this year. Reason why Samsung Electronics is planning to produce slightly more Smartphones in 2020 is because 5G mobile network has started to pick up steam and it is looking for new opportunities for growth through products such as foldable Smartphone that are based on a new form factor that are appealing to consumers despite the fact that there are still many uncertainties surrounding the global economy and that the Smartphone market has already become saturated.
It is heard that Samsung Electronics is planning to produce between 60 million and 70 million Smartphones by means of ODM that has been pushed by Samsung Electronics to improve its profitability. Many within the industry initially estimated that between 100 million and 150 million Smartphones will be produced by means of ODM. However, it seems that Samsung Electronics decided not to increase the size of entire production of Smartphones by means of ODM only slightly considering possible impact it would have on relevant industries in South Korea. However, because 60 million Smartphones is still twice more than the number of Smartphones that have been produced by means of ODM this year, possible impact due to a change in Samsung Electronics’ strategy will be inevitable.
Samsung Electronics is the biggest Smartphone manufacturer in the world. According to a market research company called Strategy Analytics, Samsung Electronics had sold 294.6 million Smartphones in 2018 which is way more than 200 million Smartphones sold by Huawei. Although it is likely that Samsung Electronics will be the top Smartphone seller once again this year and continue to maintain its momentum in 2020, it is expected that it will be challenged heavily by Huawei in 2020. According to foreign press, Huawei is looking to produce at least 300 million Smartphones in 2020 and it is going to continue to challenge Samsung Electronics to dethrone Samsung Electronics as the biggest Smartphone manufacturer.
Huawei’s goal for 2020 is about 20% more than the number of Smartphones it has produced this year. Its plan is to secure enough supply by manufacturing on its own as well as using means of OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturing). It is heard that Huawei has ordered Foxconn to produce 50 million Smartphones.
Its order for Foxconn includes entire 5G mobile devices. Its plan is to get a head start within the 5G smartphone market by overwhelming the market shares after expanding its 5G business throughout China starting from next year. It is heard that Huawei has requested enough supply of necessary parts from relevant smartphone parts manufacturers.
It is predicted that Huawei will produce its Smartphones while excluding American parts as much as possible due to the current conflict between the U.S. and China. Actually, it is shown that its recently released flagship model called ‘Mate 30’ is not made up of any part made by an American company. CEO Ren Zhengfei of Huawei showed confidence during a recent interview with CNN by saying that Huawei can become the world’s top Smartphone manufacturer despite sanctions from the U.S.
Staff Reporter Yun, Geonil | benyun@etnews.com & Staff Reporter Park, Jisung | jisung@etnews.com & Staff Reporter Jung, Hyeonjung | iam@etnews.com