Samsung Electronics Co. is getting help from South Korea's largest carrier to drum up sales of the Galaxy Round, the company's curved-screen smartphone, amid reports of weak demand.
三星电子(Samsung Electronics Co.)正藉助韩国最大电信运营商的帮助来扩大曲面屏智能手机Galaxy Round的销量;有报道称,该手机需求疲软。
Samsung and SK Telecom Co. on Tuesday declined to comment on the Galaxy Round's sales since its launch in October. Samsung has so far been low-key in its efforts to sell the phone and hasn't disclosed plans to sell it overseas. In contrast, a rival model from LG Electronics Inc., called G Flex, is available for pre-orders in Singapore and will go on sale in Hong Kong later this week.
三星电子和SK Telecom Co.周二对于Galaxy Round自10月份面世以来的销售情况不予置评。这款手机上市以来,三星电子的推销努力一直都很低调,也未披露海外销售计划。与此形成对比的是,LG Electronics Inc.推出的竞争机型G Flex已经开始在新加坡接受预定,并且将于本周晚些时候开始在香港发售。
SK Telecom, the only carrier selling the Galaxy Round in Korea, is offering a discount of approximately 100,000 won ($95) to 150,000 won ($142) to anyone buying the phone together with Samsung's Galaxy Gear smartwatch, a company spokeswoman said. The Round comes with a price tag of 1,089,000 won and the Gear sells for 396,000 won without a contract.
SK Telecom发言人表示,作为韩国独家销售Galaxy Round的电信运营商,该公司为同时购买Galaxy Round和三星的Galaxy Gear智能手表的消费者提供大约10万韩圆(合95美元)至15万韩圆(合142美元)的折扣。Galaxy Round的裸机售价为1,089,000韩圆,Gear为396,000韩圆。
SK Telecom is also offering the same discount for those willing to buy the Galaxy Note 3 smartphone with the Galaxy Gear. Compared with the Round, the 5.7-inch-screen Note 3 appears to have been faring well: Samsung said Tuesday it has shipped over 10 million units since its launch in September. The previous model, the Note II, took four months to reach the same shipment figure, Samsung said.
SK Telecom也为那些希望同时购买Galaxy Note 3智能手机和Galaxy Gear的消费者提供相同的折扣。与Round相比,凭藉着5.7寸的大屏幕,Note 3的销售情况似乎更好些:三星电子周二表示,该手机9月份上市以来已经销售了1,000万部。三星电子还表示,Note II花费了4个月时间才达到这一销量。
Samsung has been aggressively marketing the Galaxy Gear, featuring the smartwatch in music videos, and even having it worn by soccer stars.
三星电子一直在卖力推销Galaxy Gear,不仅为其制作了音乐视频广告,甚至还找来足球明星代言。
But curved-screen smartphones are proving to be a harder sell. With the jury still out on these new phones, Samsung and LG are expected to expand their rivalry to another category, this time in foldable-screen smartphones.
但是事实证明曲面屏智能手机的销售并不顺畅。鉴于这些新手机的情况仍不明朗,三星电子和LG之间预计将把竞争范围扩大到另一种机型,这一次将是可折叠屏幕智能手机。
Research firm IHS forecast earlier this year that demand for flexible displays will show massive growth during the next seven years, driving a nearly 250 times expansion in shipments from 2013 through 2020. It expects global shipments of flexible displays to jump to 792 million units in 2020, up from 3.2 million in 2013, with market revenue rising to $41.3 billion, from just $100,000.
研究公司IHS今年早些时候预计,未来7年,对柔性屏幕智能手机的需求将大幅增加,2013-2020年这类手机的发货量将增加近250倍。该研究公司预计,柔性屏幕智能手机2020年的全球发货量将由2013年的320万部扩大至7.92亿部,市场收入将由仅10万美元增加至413亿美元。