Samsung Galaxy S21 Box Office Forecast: "40% Sales Increase Compared to Previous Model"

Counterpoint Research
Estimated Domestic Sales Volume of 2.4 Million Units This Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] Samsung Electronics' new smartphone Galaxy S21 series is expected to succeed in the market, overcoming the failure of its predecessor, thanks to demand for unlocked models and other factors.

Global market research firm Counterpoint Research estimated on the 25th that Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S21 series will sell about 2.4 million units domestically this year. This is about 40% more than the annual sales volume of the previous Galaxy S20 series, which was approximately 1.7 million units.

The Galaxy S21 series was released about a month earlier than usual, with a lower launch price compared to its predecessor, and is expected to benefit from increased subsidies by mobile carriers aiming to secure 5G subscribers. The official subsidies set by the three major carriers for the Galaxy S21 series are up to 500,000 KRW.

Recently, products combining unlocked models and budget phone plans have gained popularity, leading to expectations that demand for unlocked models will be higher than anticipated. This trend is similar to last year's strategy of linking Apple's iPhone 12 with budget phone plans. Samsung Electronics also added colors to the unlocked Galaxy S21 Ultra model and expanded benefits for unlocked customers on online shopping malls to strengthen its position.

Among the models, the sales proportion of the top-tier Ultra version is expected to be high initially, but the share of the standard models, Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S21 Plus, is expected to gradually increase.

Counterpoint Research analyzes that the success of the new model can overcome the sluggish sales of its predecessor. The Galaxy S20 series suffered poor sales due to its launch coinciding with the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), as well as issues related to price and quality.

Lee Yoon-jung, an analyst at Counterpoint Research, said, "With double-digit growth expected in the domestic smartphone market this year and news of LG Electronics' business restructuring review, the sales volume of the two giants, Samsung and Apple, will increase significantly," adding, "Going forward, Samsung appears capable of not only expanding its market share but also improving profitability through strategies such as strengthening its foldable phone lineup across various price ranges."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.