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| A user performs multiple tasks on Samsung Electronics' Galaxy Fold smartphone. / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics |
By Baek Byung-yeul
Samsung Electronics will expand the number of countries selling its Galaxy Fold smartphone to 60, because demand for the new type of device has exceeded expectations, a company official said Sunday.
The company will add more than 30 markets from December to February 2020 and expects sales volume to exceed 500,000.
"We have been asked by mobile carriers and users in countries where we didn't launch the Galaxy Fold to release the device, because the foldable phone has been drawing a lot of attention," the official said.
The official added that new markets would include Vietnam, Brazil, New Zealand, Chile, Italy, the Netherlands and Greece.
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| Samsung Electronics' Galaxy Fold smartphones / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics |
Since rolling out the phones in Korea in September, Samsung has gradually expanded the number of countries where the Galaxy Fold is available. It is now sold in 29 countries including Korea, the United States, China, Japan, the United Kingdom, France and Germany.
Samsung mobile business president Koh Dong-jin previously said the Galaxy Fold would be available in about 20 countries in limited quantities, so the decision to expand the number of markets shows the positive response from consumers worldwide.
Despite the high price of 2.39 million won ($2,022), the devices sold out in few minutes. The phone has drawn the attention of early users in many countries. In China, the phones sold out in just two seconds when launched there in November.
Spurred on by the huge response, Samsung plans to expand the foldable phone range in 2020.
The company is expected to release a clamshell-style model, which will fold vertically, at the Mobile World Congress tech fair in Barcelona in February and a successor to the Galaxy Fold in the second half of 2020.
Samsung released teaser details of the clamshell-style foldable device in October, saying the model would be thinner and more compact than the Galaxy Fold, fitting easily into pockets. The company also may release a foldable smartphone that features its signature S Pen stylus, which comes with Galaxy Note smartphones.
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