A senior Samsung Electronics Co. executive in charge of the technology giant's rollout of its next flagship smartphone has abruptly resigned, people familiar with the matter said, in the latest management departure at the struggling mobile division. Just a little over a month into the job, Kim Seok-pil, who was named head of strategic marketing for Samsung's mobile business in December, will be replaced by another Samsung executive, Lee Sang-chul, who is currently in charge of Samsung's Russia operations, one of the people said Tuesday. This person said Mr. Kim was leaving due to health reasons and could return to the company at a later time. Mr. Kim's main responsibility had been to oversee the successful launch of Samsung's next Galaxy S smartphone, expected to be unveiled at a trade show in Barcelona next month. The latest departure comes after dozens of Samsung mobile executives were let go in December as part of the company's annual reshuffle of key executives. Mr. Kim had taken up the post to replace D.J. Lee, who left the position as part of the restructuring in December. Samsung, which has seen its smartphone market share ravaged by low-cost Chinese handset makers, reported a 64% drop in operating profit from mobile phones last week. Mobile phones, which accounted for 75% of Samsung's overall operating profit in the first quarter of 2014, now chip in just 37% of total earnings, as the South Korean company's smartphone sales sag and its semiconductor business picks up speed. Since last year, Samsung's leadership has been under assault from companies like Xiaomi Corp. in China and Micromax in India. Its Galaxy S5 smartphone, which it started selling last spring, was something of a flop with consumers, selling about 40% fewer than expected, according to people familiar with the matter. Samsung is hoping to reassert its leadership with its successor device, which is expected to be called the Galaxy S6. On Tuesday, the company sent an invitation for its "Unpacked" event on March 1, where it will be revealing the flagship line. In the high-end smartphone market, Samsung has also been suffering from stiff competition from Apple Inc. Samsung sold 71 million to 76 million smartphones in the fourth quarter, a significant drop from an estimated 85 million to 86 million units a year earlier. Apple said it sold a record 74.5 million iPhones in the same quarter. Source: MarketWatch
