MARKETING

M A NA GEM ENT
II
CASE: SAMSUNG MOBILE- Market Share and Profitability In
Smartphones
 Dhruv Choudhary-
MBAA22025 Dipti Krishnan-
MBAA22026 Ekta Maurya-
MANAGEMENT MBAA22027 Gayatri Rose-
MBAA22028 Gunjan Tiwari-
II MBAA22029 Harshitha
Rathore- MBAA22030 Swati
Saloni Patro- MBAA22079
Yamini- MBAA22084
 COMPANY
COMPETITION
Samsung smartphones is a part of the South Korea
With the commoditization of smartphones, Samsung has
based conglomerate, Samsung group. Founded way
faced difficulty in retaining its market
back in 1938 by Lee Byung-Chul, it entered the
competingshares withAndroid over
brands in both, and iOS1000
platforms like
smartphone industry in 2006 and has been a market
Huawei, Xiaomi, Lenovo, etc. It faces a major competition
leader since 2012 (Exhibit 2).
from the iOS device, Apple which is next to it in market
CUSTOMER share and has a much higher profitability due to higher
price. Even in emerging markets, which is a great potential
Owing to the commoditized nature of the low end segment for Samsung, Apple dominates in terms of
smartphones, developing economies are the market profitability.
segment that Samsung targets as the customers in this
market are value-driven.
CONTEXT
Social- Samsung's lack of market dominance in China can be
COLLABORATORS
attributed to the social context as they prefer home grown
Upstream and downstream supply chain partners form brands.
the major collaborators for Samsung. Agile supply chain Technological- Technological advancements have given rise
is crucial for Samsung to capture its target emerging to multiple competitors for Samsung in the low end
markets amidst over 1000 competitors. segment. Here it's innovative and customized features in the
commoditized segment can prove to be a major
differentiator.
Problem Statement: Should Samsung aim for market share or profitability in
the smartphone industry?
It lacked product differentiation and positioning in the android market and therefore it loses out on the low-
involvement consumers who are unaware of the customized and innovative features that Samsung offers and
considers it parallel to any other smartphone in the range.
The company enjoyed market share but was left behind by Apple in terms of profitability. So, the problem arises
whether Samsung can maximize profitability in a commoditized way.

Alternatives:

• Maximize market share by capturing all segments of customers i.e., Low, Medium, and High-end customers.
• Maximize profitability by quantity, over Apple and other Android smartphones.
• Market features more to increase awareness of innovative features provided by Samsung.
• Interlink the Samsung apps in all its products to create a huge environment – Samsung TVs, Tablets, Wearables,
and services are all connected with Samsung Mobile apps.

Framework To Evaluate Alternative –

• SWOT Analysis
 Evaluation of Alternatives
SWOT Analysis
1. Create a whole
environment for 1. Dependent on
Samsung Products Android OS
using its product 2. Market Awareness
Strength portfolio
2. Increase Market
low Weakness
growth and Product
Growth

1. Innovate and
1. Many players in
Threats Market
2. Pricing Strategy
market features to the
target audience Opportunity
2. Increase in Mobile
effect Profitability Communication
Recommended Actions
• Globally, Samsung already holds a considerable market share. In 2015, it outsold all other companies globally in terms of
smartphones sold. At the close of the second quarter of 2015, the Asia-Pacific area, primarily China and India, had captures
of 10.8% and 23%, respectively. Given that Apple and Samsung are quite distinct businesses with their own approaches,
they should compete for market share in the years to come. Jackson at IDC stated it well when he said, "Samsung is
product focussed, Apple is platform focussed." Apple sells more easily because of its line of specialised products that
compliment one another.
• Given that Samsung's modified Android OS is unique compared to other smartphone operating systems, awareness raising
efforts should be made in the marketing department. Spending a lot of money on marketing and advertising is therefore
essential for Samsung. The aforementioned solution might appear to require the company to spend more money than it
would make in profits, but in the long run, there will be a large number of users, particularly in a nation like India where
low-cost smartphones will predominate in the coming years because mobile data usage will have a big impact on
smartphone usage.
Plan to handle any negatives of recommended alternative:
• The drawbacks of the suggested substitute, Samsung, for developing countries
are that they force buyers to realise that not all Android phones are made equal
because Samsung heavily customises the Android OS.Customers in these
markets are primarily value-driven, with Android phones with lower prices leading
the pack.
Thank You