Competitive Advantage Reva

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7/28/2019 Competitive Advantage Reva http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/competitive-advantage-reva 1/17  Competitive Advantage ‘SAMSUNG’  REVA RISKIYA VAYRONTINA 2244.12.160

Transcript of Competitive Advantage Reva

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Competitive

Advantage‘SAMSUNG’ 

REVA RISKIYA

VAYRONTINA

2244.12.160

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Company profile 

Samsung Electronics is part of one of the largest multi-billion dollar corporations inthe world. In 2007 it exceeded the $100bn mark in annual sales for the first time in its

history. This makes it one of the world's top three companies in the electronics industrywhere only two other companies, Siemens and Hewlett-Packard, have posted largerrevenues. The name Samsung literally means ‘three stars’ or ‘tristar’ in Korean, reflecting

the Samsung Group’s dominance in two further sectors: Samsung Heavy Industries and

Samsung Engineering and Construction. If you are talking innovation in Samsung walks thewalk and is now the established leader in consumer electronics, providing a range of leading-edge premium products and, in their own words, ‘leading the digital convergence

revolution’. In so doing Samsung has made a remarkable transformation from copy -cat manufacturer to become Asia's most valuable technology company.

Samsung today owes much of its success to its Value Innovation Programme. With 6design labs staffed by 450 people it is serious about understanding what it is consumers

need long before considering the technologies required to deliver them. It believes (and, tobe fair, evidence suggests) that success in consumer electronics can only ever be short termand there is therefore a pressing need for continuous innovation in order to develop newtechnology platforms and create products that are first of its kind in the marketplace.Samsung spends more than $6bn on research annually. It recognises that many of itsproducts, such as semiconductors and flat-screens, are now basic commodities, and itsfocus is on producing iconic devices for the next generat ion as Sony’s Walkman was in the

’80s and the iPod is today. Samsung’s innovation focus is therefore set firmly on design and,

most specifically, on the design of digital TVs. Samsung launched the R7 LCD TV in 2005which paved the way for the 2007 “Bordeaux”, a flat screen television with contoursreminiscent of a wine glass. This is Samsung’s first LCD television to sell more than 1m

units.Samsung has also turned its hand to designing slick mobile phones, teaming up with

Bang & Olufsen to produce the Serene, and most recently the Serenata handset. Describedby FHM as “cooler than an Eskimo in an Armani anorak” it is certainly giving its peers a run

for their money. In the third quarter of 2007 Samsung’s mobile phone division overtook 

Motorola to gain second place in the market and has again seen growth in handset salesreaching 14% share. Although still far behind Nokia, with the increased demand for 3Ghandsets and its strong position in emerging markets, Samsung expects a further growth.

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However, it is not all flash and glamour: Up until recently Samsung’s memory division was

responsible for 70% of the profit but overcapacity has led to an industry wide decline. Undaunted

however, Samsung, which often makes big investments during downturns so that it can increase its

market share and make bigger profits when the industry cycle picks up, is raising its capital

investment in this division. As peers cut back this is a bold move that signals a strong confidence in

the eventual upturn of the memory market. With a brand value now greater than Sony, it is clearthat Samsung’s strategy of delivering high quality products with an emphasis on design is paying off 

and the company is confident of its future performance. Time and again Samsung has proved it is

able to look into the future and create what’s just around the corner for the rest of us. 

  Vision

Samsung is guided by a single vision: to lead the digital convergence movement. We believe that through technology innovation today, we will find the solutions we need toface the challenges of tomorrow. Technology opens opportunities for businesses to grow,for citizens in emerging markets to prosper by tapping into the digital economy stage, andfor people to find new opportunities. 

  Mision Everything we do at Samsung is guided by our mission: to be "digital-εCompany" the

best. Samsung grew into a global corporation by facing challenges directly. In the yearsahead, our people are dedicated will continue to face many challenges and provide creativeideas to develop products and services that lead the market. Their intelligence willcontinue to make Samsung a global company profitable and responsible. 

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History of Samsung 1938 to 1970

In 1938, Lee Byung-chull (1910–1987) of a large landowning family in the Uiryeongcounty came to the nearby Daegu city and founded Samsung Sanghoe , a small trading

company with forty employees located in Su-dong (now Ingyo-dong). It dealt in groceriesproduced in and around the city and produced its own noodles. The company prosperedand Lee moved its head office to Seoul in 1947. When the Korean War broke out, however,he was forced to leave Seoul and started a sugar refinery in Busan named Cheil Jedang.After the war, in 1954, Lee founded Cheil Mojik and built the plant in Chimsan-dong, Daegu.It was the largest woollen mill ever in the country and the company took on the aspect of amajor company.Samsung diversified into many areas and Lee sought to establish Samsung as an industryleader in a wide range of enterprises, moving into businesses such as insurance, securities,and retail. Lee placed great importance on industrialization, and focused his economicdevelopment strategy on a handful of large domestic conglomerates, protecting them from

competition and assisting them financially.In 1948, Cho Hong-jai (the Hyosung group’s founder) jointly invested in a new

company called Samsung Mulsan Gongsa , or the Samsung Trading Corporation, with theSamsung Group founder Lee Byung-chull. The trading firm grew to become the present-daySamsung C&T Corporation. But after some years Cho and Lee separated due to differencesin management between them. He wanted to get up to a 30% group share. After settlement,Samsung Group was separated into Samsung Group and Hyosung Group, Hankook Tire, andothers.

In the late 1960s, Samsung Group entered into the electronics industry. It formedseveral electronics-related divisions, such as Samsung Electronics Devices Co., SamsungElectro-Mechanics Co., Samsung Corning Co., and Samsung Semiconductor &

Telecommunications Co., and made the facility in Suwon. Its first product was a black-and-white television set.

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1970 to 1990 

In 1980, Samsung acquired the Gumi-based Hanguk Jeonja Tongsin and entered the

telecommunications hardware industry. Its early products were switchboards. The facility

were developed into the telephone and fax manufacturing systems and became the centre

of Samsung's mobile phone manufacturing. They have produced over 800 million mobile

phones to date. The company grouped them together under Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

in the 1980s.

After the founder's death in 1987, Samsung Group was separated into four business

groups - Samsung Group, Shinsegae Group, CJ Group and Hansol Group. Shinsegae

(discount store, department store) was originally part of Samsung Group, separated in the

1990s from the Samsung Group along with CJ Group

(Food/Chemicals/Entertainment/logistics) and the Hansol Group (Paper/Telecom). Today

these separated groups are independent and they are not part of or connected to the

Samsung Group. One Hansol Group representative said, "Only people ignorant of the laws

governing the business world could believe something so absurd," adding, "When Hansol

separated from the Samsung Group in 1991, it severed all payment guarantees and share-

holding ties with Samsung affiliates." One Hansol Group source asserted, "Hansol,

Shinsegae, and CJ have been under independent management since their respective

separations from the Samsung Group." One Shinsegae Department Store executive director

said, "Shinsegae has no payment guarantees associated with the Samsung Group." In the 1980s, Samsung Electronics began to invest heavily in research and

development, investments that were pivotal in pushing the company to the forefront of the

global electronics industry. In 1982, it built a television assembly plant in Portugal; in 1984,

a plant in New York; in 1985, a plant in Tokyo; in 1987, a facility in England; and another

facility in Austin in 1996. As of 2012, Samsung has invested more than US$13 billion in the

Austin facility, which operates under the name Samsung Austin Semiconductor LLC. This

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makes the Austin location the largest foreign investment in Texas and one of the largest 

single foreign investments in the United

1990 to 2000 

Samsung started to rise as an international corporation in the 1990s. Samsung's

construction branch was awarded a contract to build one of the two Petronas

Towers in Malaysia, Taipei 101 in Taiwan and the Burj Khalifa in United Arab Emirates. In

1993, Lee Kun-hee sold off ten of Samsung Group's subsidiaries, downsized the company,

and merged other operations to concentrate on three industries: electronics, engineering,

and chemicals. In 1996, the Samsung Group reacquired the Sungkyunkwan

University foundation. Samsung became the largest producer of memory chips in the world in 1992, and is

the world's second-largest chipmaker after Intel (see Worldwide Top 20 SemiconductorMarket Share Ranking Year by Year). In 1995, it created its firstliquid-crystal

display screen. Ten years later, Samsung grew to be the world's largest manufacturer of 

liquid-crystal display panels.Sony, which had not invested in large-size TFT-LCDs, 

contacted Samsung to cooperate, and, in 2006, S-LCD was established as a joint venture

between Samsung and Sony in order to provide a stable supply of LCD panels for both

manufacturers. S-LCD was owned by Samsung (50% plus 1 share) and Sony (50% minus 1

share) and operates its factories and facilities in Tangjung, South Korea. As on 26 December

2011 it was announced that Samsung had acquired the stake of Sony in this joint venture Compared to other major Korean companies, Samsung survived the 1997 Asian

financial crisis relatively unharmed. However,Samsung Motor was sold to Renault at a

significant loss. As of 2010, Renault Samsung is 80.1 percent owned by Renault and 19.9

percent owned by Samsung. Additionally, Samsung manufactured a range of aircraft from

the 1980s to 1990s. The company was founded in 1999 as Korea Aerospace Industries

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(KAI), the result of merger between then three domestic major aerospace divisions of 

Samsung Aerospace, Daewoo Heavy Industries, and Hyundai Space and Aircraft Company.

However, Samsung still manufacturesaircraft engines and gas turbines. 2000 to present  

Samsung Techwin has been the sole supplier of a combustor module of the Trent 

900 engine of theRolls-Royce Airbus A380-The largest passenger airliner in the world-

since 2001. Samsung Techwin of Korea is a revenue-sharing participant in the Boeing's 787

Dreamliner GEnx engine program. In 2010, Samsung announced a 10-year growth strategy centred around five

businesses. One of these businesses was to be focused on biopharmaceuticals, to which the

Company has committed₩2.1 trillion. In December 2011, Samsung Electronics sold its hard disk drive (HDD) business to Seagate. 

In the first quarter of 2012, Samsung Electronics became the world's largest mobile

phone maker by unit sales, overtaking Nokia, which had been the market leader since

1998.In the August 21st edition of the  Austin American-Statesman, Samsung confirmed

plans to spend 3 to 4 billion dollars converting half of its Austin chip manufacturing plant 

to a more profitable chip.The conversion should start in early 2013 with production on line

by the end of 2013. On August 24, 2012, a U.S jury ruled that Samsung had to pay Apple

Incorporated US$1.05 billion dollars in damages for violating its patents

on smartphone technology.Samsung decried the decision saying that the move could harm

innovation in the sector.It also followed a South Korean ruling that said both companies

were guilty of infringing on each other's intellectual property.In the first trading after the

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ruling, Samsung shares on the Kospi index fell 7.7%, the largest fall since October 24, 2008,

to 1,177,000 Korean won. Apple then sought to bar the sales of eight Samsung phones

(Galaxy S 4G, Galaxy S2 AT&T, Galaxy S2 Skyrocket, Galaxy S2 T-Mobile, Galaxy S2 Epic 4G,

Galaxy S Showcase, Droid Charge and Galaxy Prevail) in the United States. On September 4, 2012, Samsung announced it plans to examine all of its Chinese suppliers

for possible violations of labor policies. The company said it will carry out audits of 250

Chinese companies that are its exclusive suppliers to see if children under the age of 16 are

being used in their factories

1. InboundLogistics 

Knowing that Samsung already has its own operations and activities in the manufacturingprocesses of their smart phones, most activities involved in inbound logistics are heavilyrefined. The key in the implementations to our strategy will be to synchronize Samsung’scurrent scheduling and inventory controls with AuthenTec’s in order to continuously

create more value without slowing down the manufacturing process.

2. Operations 

Operations will be one of the biggest keys to change with respect to the value chainframework, second only to marketing and sales. The acquisition of AuthenTec would sprout a major issue in the manufacturing process. Because Samsung’s manufacturing operation

has mostly been localized to Seoul, South Korea, the North American company’s China-based manufacturing of biometric scanners could put a delay in its production process.Logistics play a big role in ensuring that scheduling and inventory control are matched withSamsung’s pace; but because of overseas shipping and unpredictable delays that come withit, this operation potentially becomes less streamlined and thus can decrease value. Apossible solution to this challenge would be to relocate AuthenTec’s operations closer to

Samsung’s facilities for more immediate control over hardware production. There would

be considerable costs involved with such a move, including the increased labour costs inKorea compared to China. Samsung would need to determine if the payback period forvalue they gain in their operations offsets the costs quickly enough to be worth making themove, or if it would be better to keep production as it is and risk the potential drawbacks of 

the distanced production of the scanners. 3. OutboundLogistics 

Current outbound logistics are very solid on Samsung’s end. Because it has most of its

operations localized within Samsung Town in Seoul, all activities related to the gathering,storing or distribution of their finished smart phones (and all other products) are done

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effectively, with little delay and with a streamlined logistics methodology. The acquisitionof AuthenTec will not have any effect on these logistics procedures, as the final state of theproducts is the same as in their older smart phone models. 4. Marketing and sales

Because our new game strategy is a position-building one, the marketing and sales is themost important point after operations to be considered in the value chain framework. Themarketing and sales should be pitched to include both the biometric scanners as well as thesecure email/messaging network together as a security package deal. The target demographic is a new market that Samsung hasn’t fully catered to until now, so new

market research will have to be conducted on how to pitch the products in a way that willattract the business men and women who deal with sensitive data regularly and count onthe security of their cellular and data networks for exchanging information. By using thecorrect marketing strategies, Samsung can maximize the value perceived by the public.The biggest challenge with this stage of the framework is in convincing current blackberry

users that Samsung’s network and security features on their mobile phones are superior tothat of RIM’s. 

5. Service 

The value that services add or help to maintain should be considered in both AuthenTecand Synchronica’s acquisitions. Minimal training will be required for employees in either

category because they already have their expertise since before the acquisition. There maybe some standards that Samsung will prefer them to adjust to (in terms of safety standardsor in the slight adjustments required to adapt their technology to Samsung’s technology).

The installation of the proposed security network will have many incurred costs due to itsbreadth (worldwide), which Samsung must be ready to cover in order to proceed with thepromise of enhanced and superior security. 

6. Support Activities With respect to support activities which enhance the value created through the value chainanalysis, Samsung already has many of said activities in place. The new operationsregarding the upgraded technology would require small tweaks in the technology

development support activity, mostly with updating materials and adjusting the buildingprocess.Firm infrastructure will be modified to account for new employees gained throughacquisition, which will include adjustments in the accounts related to said employees andtheir companies, the management of these employees, the quality of the newest itemsproduced, and in the information systems required to communicate live data acrossnational borders. Closely related to the employee infrastructure are the adjustments in

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compensation via HRM for the employees already with Samsung and those joiningSamsung through acquisitions. 

7. Critical Evaluation of the Value Chain Framework  The Analysis Value Chain Framework analysis has its shortcomings in not being able torepresent value-adding activities that Samsung might be performing outside of the valuechain. A lot of the value created by Samsung, even strictly in the mobile market, comes fromthings like branding and human resources which are not accounted for in such an analysis.It’s because of this that we have selected separate analytics techniques throughout thereport to understand Samsung and its operations from various perspectives. Determininginbound and outbound logistics and the changes that would result in them from theacquisition of AuthenTec and Synchronica and the new activities added was the most difficult and perhaps vague sections of the Value Chain Analysis because that’s not 

information readily available to the public. Determining how things would change outside

of the obvious expectations related to data coming in and out of the new branches andwhat the new employees have to offer is a difficult task with the limited informationavailable. 

8. Human source management 

samsung community services team was established in 1994 as a Korean company that isdesigned to facilitate the participation of employees Samsung has given the 300 central office for public relations in the world samsung,

samsung fully encourage and support employees. more than 61% of all employeesworldwide samsung donate their time and skills in various activities, and about 70 000volunteers involved in the program from 1902 volunteers. One of Samsung's strongest assets is our team of talented researchers and engineers. More than a quarter of allSamsung employees—42,000 people—work everyday in research and development, andwe expect that number to surpass 50,000 by 2010. At —and among—our 42 researchfacilities around the world, they collaborate on strategic technologies for the future andoriginal technologies designed to forge new market trends and set new standards forexcellence. 

9. Technology development of Samsung

Samsung has grown to become one of the world's leading electronics companies,specializing in digital appliances and media, semiconductors, memory, and systemintegration. Now the quality and innovative products and Samsung has been recognized inthe world. It all became a major milestone in the history of Samsung, shows how thecompany has developed its product range and achievement, increase revenue and market share, and follow its mission to provide a better life for customers all over the world.

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 10. Procurement 

As a world leader in digital technology Samsung Electronics advanced to a new era in

product development, corporate culture and contributions to the global community. To achieve these objectives, we understand how important it is to build relationships andhave the full support of the supplier class. Samsung Electronics was looking for potential partners with world-class innovativetechnology and special technologies to collaborate and create new business opportunities. Together with suppliers, we will work together towards a common goal: To be The World'sNumber One. Ethics ownership certificates The buyers of Samsung Electronics, realize and accept an important role in increasing the

value for the customer.

In this important endeavor, we will do all transactions with suppliers with honesty andintegrity for growth and shared prosperity. We will understand and comply with laws,regulations, and codes governing the implementation of this business. ownership Emblem Samsung Electronics and Supplier will work together to make the best performancetowards the Global Top Tier on the basis of the ideology of "Win-Win" and co-existenseshared prosperity between Samsung Electronics and our Suppliers. Sources of Samsung’s cost advantage in DRAMs Samsung’s cost advantage is clearly visible from the comparison of costs (and their

elements) that were borne by the company and its competitors in 2003 (Tab. 3): Samsung’soverall cost was 24 per cent lower than the weighted average cost of the other fourproducers; two most significant elements of the cost structure, i.e. raw materials andlabour, were 36 and 27 per cent lower respectively. When expressed by means of a relationof average selling price to costs (“productivity” of cost elements), the differences are even

more visible (comp. Tab. 4 ): overall superiority of Samsung over its competitors exceeded51 per cent!

The cost advantages related to raw materials may be explained by better negotiated agreementswith suppliers (perhaps due to the larger volumes of purchases – comp. Fig. 5) and possibly lessshipping and distribution costs that stem from the fact that Samsung’s fab facilities are

geographically collocated (while competitors’ facilities are spread world-wide). In terms of labourproductivity only Chinese SMIC outperformed Samsung, but that came hardly unexpectedly: lowlabour costs in China had been and were to remain unbeatable for some time yet.

Other possibly meaningful factors that cannot be forgotten include: higher yields (due toprocess quality and use of more efficient, larger silicon wafers), use of common core designfor different products supported by the flexibility of production lines (which enabled cost-efficient production of a wide variety of different semiconductors), and – reportedly – 12

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per cent lower investment in capital assets related to the aforementioned strategic decisionon fab collocation.

The last but not least element of the Samsung’s “cost puzzle” (which, unfortunately cannot be

supported by concrete numbers from the case study, and is rather based on intuition) was the waythe firm built and maintained intellectual capital and stimulated innovativeness and creativityamong employees. It had established an incentive-based remuneration system, it sponsoredemployees for PhDs and MBA education, it created a family-friendly working environment in whichmore of employees’ energy could be devoted to solving problems at work instead of troubles inprivate lives. In most modern industries, such a long-term approach and investing in human capitaleventually pays off resulting in higher productivity and better and cheaper products.

2. Sources of Samsung’s price premium in DRAMs 

Samsung achieved an almost 15 per cent price premium over (the weighted average priceof) its competitors (comp. Tab. 3). How was that possible?

There were, apparently, two main reasons for that: quality and product mix.The former was definitely a unique advantage in the semiconductor industry which was, generally,characterised by little product differentiation (in terms of physical and functional properties), andwhere demand was highly price-driven. Even though, due to the outstanding quality and reliabilityof its products, Samsung had managed to achieve a position which justified paying premium for itsproducts. Between 1995 and 2005 the company won awards for performance from most of itsmajor customers, and many of them (even rivals of one another) named Samsung their supplier of choice. Of course, the highly-recognisable brand (the value of which was estimated at almost USD11 billion in 2003 !) helped to maintain the price premium as well.

The Samsung’s successful product mix strategy, on the other hand, was realised through

extremely wide differentiation of products that the company manufactured: in DRAMmemory segment it was over 1,200 different types! The large product portfolio allowedSamsung to address a very broad market and to avoid fierce price fighting in the most competitive sector of so called commodity DRAMs (where many producers had to sellbelow production costs). Apart from the ‘mainstream’ mass products (in general: low-cost commodity DRAMs), Samsung offered:

• “legacy products”, i.e. older types of chips, production of which was continued after the industry

had moved to newer generations and which – due to limited supply – could be sold at pricepremium;

• “specialty products” – chips designed for niche uses where the price wass usually agreedon bilaterally between Samsung and a given buyer (at the same time, the company was ableto optimise costs by building the customised architectures using a common core design).

3. How Samsung should react to threat of large-scale Chinese entry?In my opinion, none of the two options of reacting to the Chinese “menace” that were presented in

the case study, should have be chosen by Samsung as the only one. Rather, a mix of the two seemedto be an optimal approach.

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 Samsung’s unique ability to maintain the low-cost and, at the same time, differentiated productionshould have been maintained, but – simultaneously – certain aspects of the changing industryenvironment might have been taken advantage of as well. It was not necessary for Samsung todesperately look for ways to decrease its labour costs (which is usually a reason for establishedcompanies to move their production to China): its cost advantage over competitors was supposed

to remain for some time. On the other hand, in line with an old Chinese saying: “keep your friendsclose, but the enemies even closer”, it was not advisable to ignore the rising competitors (as the

industry had done years earlier with regards to Samsung itself). Earlier of later, China itself wasposed to become a significant (if not the most significant) market for semiconductors, thus allactions aiming at better positioning itself to sell in the market seemed to be highly desirable.Therefore, Samsung should have decided to partner with a Chinese firm for production of its low-end, legacy products. At the same time, its state-of-the-art technologies had to be kept in-house.Such a strategy would let Samsung preserve its valuable intellectual property; manufacturing of themass market products together with Chinese did not pose a threat to the IP, since technologiesnecessary for that usually were no longer proprietary information. On the other hand, thepartnership might result in a possibility to further decrease the costs due to availability of attractivesubsidising from the Chinese government and lower labour costs, and – of course – preparegrounds for enlarging sales to customers in the opening and growing market.

There was, however, a number of important aspects that had to be remembered whileimplementing the strategy:

• Samsung’s competitive advantage related to the unique breeding environment for innovation andefficacy of the centralised R&D and production should have been preserved, thus all new product development had to be kept in the Korean headquarters;• another competitive advantage of the company, the quality, should have been definitely

maintained, too; it might have become a challenge if part of the production was to be moved toChina, therefore Samsung had to ensure it could properly influence its Chinese partner (e.g. by

remaining a majority stakeholder in the joint undertaking);• while overall reduction of costs was not of key importance for Samsung, the partnership with aChinese firm could have been, nonetheless, used for reduction of labour costs related to productionof legacy products (in case of which the associated gain was to be most significant) with no risk of compromising valuable intellectual property; that way, another competitive advantage of Samsung,the industry’s best ASP to cost ratio, would be further strengthened. However, in parallel to building the partnership, Samsung couldn’t have forgotten about other

Chinese would-be competitors which would supposedly flourish around. Therefore, the companyshould have kept strong focus on maintaining its technological leadership through cutting-edgeR&D (still unavailable at the time, despite having relatively easy access to capital, for Chinese start-ups), especially towards future substitutes for DRAMS: flash memory chips.

Another way of impeding development of the competition, although more risky and thus tobe applied with care, was to suppress Chinese entrants by decreasing margins on low-endDRAMs. A price on the edge of profitability, connected with Samsung’s well-known quality,was likely to push competitors towards more or less significant operational losses; at thesame time, Samsung would be still able to earn on the other products from its wideportfolio. A price war never is, however, sustainable in the long run, so a questionremained: for how long were the Chinese challengers able to operate in red? Some experts

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suggested that they might be even better prepared for the years of initial losses thanSamsung had been back in the 1980 

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE 

The support you need – when and where you need it  Samsung respects the choice customers have in how and with whom they do business.That’s why, to more effectively support product lines, Samsung has established a

geographically-dispersed base of direct dealers and indirect channel partners that result intight-knit national coverage. So, as a single- or multi-location operation, you benefit fromhaving Samsung partners right where you need them most – near corporate headquarters,at branch offices or out in the field. A direct connection to Samsung through your authorized dealer As a decision maker for your business, it’s your job to make the right choices to keep your

business competitive and vibrant. With an authorized Samsung dealer as yourtelecommunications solutions provider you can rest assured that your telecommunicationsneeds are being fulfilled. Look at your Samsung dealer as your trusted advisor, keeping youinformed about new technology advancements, service options and cost-effective measuresthat can give your business a competitive advantage. Samsung’s singular focus is on

businesses like yours. Its authorized dealers represent a commitment to supporting you with outstanding solutions and service capabilities. Dealer expertise is sharpened inSamsung’s mandated certification courses, so you can be confident in the technology andservice you are receiving. Samsung supports its authorized dealers along the entire

continuum with product training, deployment, installation and professional services. Thislife cycle of support provides you with an additional Samsung advantage - a five-yearhardware warranty that reduces your long term costs. It’s one of the ways Samsung thanks

you for investing in their solutions. A strong commitment to research & development  Samsung strives to understand what customers need ahead of its competitors. Theirengineers adjust their thinking to develop original and innovative products that will meet those needs, along with new technologies to lead the future market. They respond t o the “voice of the customer” by

designing and testing new products, and through hands-on management of product 

lifecycles. Each year Samsung has invested at least 9% of sales revenue into R&D activities. As thecompany continues to increase R&D spending, their commitment to leading technology standardization andsecuring intellectual property rights remains strong. In fact, Samsung was the largest publisher of U.S. patents in 2006 and is the owner of one of the largest U.S. patent portfolios—increasing patent procurement by 11 percent year over year. 

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Cutting-edge technology that’s affordable. Samsung’s expertise in voice/data convergence, wired, wireless communications, VoIP and

core network  technologies has produced OfficeServ™ 7000 – a family of groundbreaking businesscommunications solutions that are redefining the rules of the game. The OfficeServ™

platform provides you with business advantages across your entire spectrum of needs. First, you’ll enjoy the peace of mind that 

comes from knowing that your communications are being routed over a secure, reliableplatform. Second, the intuitive design and scalable architecture of this platform enablesgrowth in affordable increments, so your investment will carry you well into the futurewith significant ROI. In addition, the system’s architecture provides flexibility—a mediumwhere additional applications can be added to enhance the power of Samsung’s solutions.

More and more small and mid-sized businesses are realizing the need for ComputerTelephony Integration solutions to manage their resources and desktops. In response,Samsung has developed a suite of OfficeServ™ CTI applications for improving call handing, managing the

user interface, interpreting and gathering call reporting and improving customer affinitythrough screen pops that detail names and call history. Standards-based technology meansthat system serviceability is just a phone call away and your telecommunications arereduced in operational complexity. With its single expandable architecture, OfficeServ™

7000 installs and configures easily. You are considering a platform that not only gives youaccess to voice and data throughout your office complex and even off-site, but alsoeliminates divergent systems, bottlenecks and competition between voice and dataapplications. Whether you are upgrading or are launching a converged system for the veryfirst time, this line-up of systems offers a perfect blend of versatility and power that willspeed up your business. samsung products : 

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Conclusion Samsung Electronics is part of one of the largest multi-billion dollar corporations in the

world. In 2007 it exceeded the $100bn mark in annual sales for the first time in its history.This makes it one of the world's top three companies in the electronics industry where onlytwo other companies, Siemens and Hewlett-Packard, have posted larger revenues. Thename Samsung literally means ‘three stars’ or ‘tristar’ in Korean, reflecting the Samsung

Group’s dominance in two further sectors: Samsung Heavy Industries and SamsungEngineering and Construction. Samsung’s cost advantage is clearly visible from the

comparison of costs (and their elements) that were borne by the company and itscompetitors in 2003 Samsung’s overall cost was 24 per cent lower than the weightedaverage cost of the other four producers; two most significant elements of the cost structure, i.e. raw materials and labour, were 36 and 27 per cent lower respectively. Whenexpressed by means of a relation of average selling price to costs (“productivity” of cost 

elements), the differences are even more visible overall superiority of Samsung over itscompetitors exceeded 51 per cent! 

COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IN MY SELF

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