Samsung expects to overtake Nokia by 2010

Dubai: Samsung, the second largest mobile phone vendor, expects to overtake Nokia and become No 1 by 2010 or 2011, a top official said.

"We have the chip technology, in-house software development, in-house designers, and strong R&D. So, I have no doubt why we cannot achieve that spot in the near future, said Ranjan Mazumdar, vice-president and head of sales and marketing, Samsung Electronics.

He said the company have shown solid growth in the first quarter despite a strong competition. "We have sold 46.3 million units globally."

The South Korean giant enjoys 16-17 per cent of the market share in Gulf and 15.6 per cent globally.

"We make changes and features to the phones depending on customer needs. We talk to customers, especially those in the region, and we get a feedback and what they are looking for. We design the phones to their needs and that is Samsung's marketing strategy. We answer their needs and take it to the next level," Ranjan said after unveiling Samsung's new flagship model for 2008, Soul, also known as U900 in the Gulf.

The premium model will be available from May 11th in UAE and it is priced at Dh2,000. It comes in two colours - black and silver.

He said, "This year we plan to launch 60-70 models and increase our market share to more than 20 per cent in the region."

In the high-end models, Samsung enjoys 35-40 per cent market share and is neck-to-neck with its competitor.

The company will be launching Roxy, a full touch-screen phone similar to iPhone, in the second half of the year.

At only 12.9mm thin, Soul is equipped with professional photography functions, including a five megapixel digital camera. The phone is enhanced with advanced multimedia capabilities which showcase up-to-date features such as face detection, image stabiliser and Wide Dynamic Range (WDR).

Featuring the Magic Touch by DaCP, it is equipped with navigation indicators on the keypad of the phone which change according to the user's needs making navigation simple, intuitive and direct.

According to research firm iSuppli, global mobile-handset shipments reached 296 million units in the first quarter of 2008, up 17 per cent from 253 million in the first quarter of 2007.

Samsung in the second quarter of 2007 passed Motorola to become the No 2 handset brand in the world.