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By Kim Yoo-chul
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| Lee Young-hee |
In an exclusive interview with The Korea Times, Monday, Lee Young-hee, executive vice president of Samsung's mobile business, said that the smartwatch, named Galaxy Gear, will use a "non-flexible display."
"We will be introducing a new wearable concept device called Galaxy Gear at our own event in Berlin on Sept. 4," Lee said. Samsung has been preparing the smartwatch product for a long time.
"The Gear won't have a flexible display. The new device will enhance and enrich the current smart mobile experience in many ways. It will lead a new trend in smart mobile communications. We are confident that the Gear will add meaningful momentum to the mobile industry," Lee said.
The executive, who moved to Samsung in 2007 after serving as a marketing expert at L'Oreal and Unilever, said the upcoming device is mainly targeted at young trend setters.
When asked if Samsung intends to release new wearable gadgets using flexible displays, the executive hinted that the company is preparing to introduce more advanced ones.
"We have intellectual properties for patents related to the next wearable devices. Those are concepts for future products."
The company is gearing up against its rivals including Sony to get the upper hand in the market for wearable devices because the smartphone market is heading toward saturation.
Lee also confirmed that a Galaxy Note3 will make its international debut at IFA. But she declined to comment about specific details about the new phablet — a term devised by the company that means a combination of smartphone and tablet.
"Samsung opened a new smart mobile device category back in 2011 with the introduction of the first Galaxy Note. Since then, smartphones with large screens have been a mainstream trend. As the creator of this category, we will introduce our customers to enhanced key features on our Galaxy Note devices."
Samsung is seeking to strengthen its tablet business as its smartphone business has grown to what the company believes is a "proper level" that can be managed in terms of size and revenue.
The executive made it clear that Samsung has no interest in Canada's BlackBerry, which has been put up for sale. There has been speculation that Samsung may be interested in BlackBerry's patent portfolio.
"Samsung Electronics is not considering that opportunity," she said without elaborating further.
Lee said that Samsung will also focus on strengthening its mobile security industry as it believes the market has growth potential.
Recently, the U.S. Defense Department decided to use Samsung Electronics' Android-based Knox solution.
"The mobile security industry is a growing market opportunity. To address the potential, Samsung Electronics has been focusing on enhancing mobile security. We are ready to adapt Knox to the market needs," she said.
But Lee declined to comment about Samsung's plan to offset growing worries over a decline in profit at its mobile business. The company has been urged to find new cash generators to hedge against this.
