Samsung appoints Galaxy guru to head up mobile division

Samsung is less than a month away from the launch of its Galaxy S20 series of flagship smartphones, and it’s now made a big change to mobile operations.

Samsung has named a new mobile chief in Roh Tae-moon, according to Reuters and the firm’s website. This move means Roh is apparently its youngest ever mobile head, albeit at 51 years old.

The Korean brand says Roh “led the development of the Galaxy series,” while sources tell Reuters that the executive pushed to outsource more smartphone production to cut costs. This suggests we could see even more devices outsourced in a bid to compete with low-cost rivals Huawei, Realme, and Xiaomi.

News of the leadership change comes roughly two months after it was reported that Samsung plans to outsource at least a fifth of its smartphone production. The November 2019 report notes that Wingtech will take up production and design duties of these devices. The move to outsource production and design could apparently result in a 30% reduction in component costs, opening the door for even cheaper Samsung devices.

Furthermore, the Korean manufacturer’s website notes that Roh is expected to bring “fresh strategies” to the table. Samsung introduced the Galaxy S10e and a cheaper Galaxy Note 10 in 2019, helping to improve early sales in the process. The firm also launched the Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite earlier this year, suggesting that more affordable, higher end phones are still part of the division’s approach.

The new Samsung mobile chief will likely be focusing on 5G and foldables in 2020 as well, with second-generation 5G phones and cheaper foldable devices expected from the firm this year. What would you do if you were the Samsung mobile head? Give us your answers in the comments!