Samsung Electronics said Tuesday that “no such decision has been finalized,” responding to speculation over a possible withdrawal.
A company spokesperson said market conditions in China are under review, but denied reports of a full exit from its TV and home appliance business.
According to market research firm AVC, Samsung’s share of the Chinese color TV market stood at just 3.62 percent as of early this month, more than halved from 8.48 percent share in March 2024.
Japan's Nikkei reported Samsung plans to end its direct home appliance and TV sales in China by the end of the year, and AVC forecasts the company is likely to transition from a direct sales model to a proxy agency model within the second half of the year.
Samsung Electronics Visual Display (VD) Division President Yong Seok-woo earlier this month admitted that the China business was difficult, adding that the company is "looking at the business in various forms, and discussions are currently ongoing."
A retreat from the TV market would represent a second major blow to Samsung in China, echoing its earlier failure in the local smartphone sector. Much like its mobile division—which lost its dominance to domestic brands and saw its market share evaporate to roughly 1 percent—Samsung's TV division is being squeezed out by aggressive local competitors.
Samsung first entered the Chinese market in the mid-1990s and established itself as a top-tier brand.
By early 2011, the company led the Chinese flat-panel TV market with a 12.3 percent share, firmly cementing its image as a premium electronics manufacturer.
However, Chinese rivals such as Hisense and TCL rapidly closed the gap, leveraging superior panel procurement capabilities, aggressive pricing, and expansive local distribution networks.
While Samsung’s OLED TVs are still highly regarded by Chinese tech reviewers for their AI chips, design, and gaming performance, superior product quality is no longer translating into business viability.
Industry analysts note that high-end strategies are failing to gain traction as domestic manufacturers successfully push into the premium segment. Foreign brands as a whole are struggling; total TV shipments in China for Sony, Samsung, Sharp, and Philips combined fell short of 1 million units last year, capturing less than a 5 percent collective market share.
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