Samsung Electronics' Video Display (VD) Division is undergoing a significant transformation, shifting its focus from traditional TV operations to software and platform services. This move comes just a week after Lee Won-jin took the helm of the TV business. The company aims to build a sustainable revenue model beyond its status as the world's leading TV manufacturer for 20 consecutive years.
According to industry sources, shortly after his appointment on May 4, Lee established a new task force dedicated to maximizing advertising revenue from its proprietary TV platform, Samsung TV Plus, and took on the role of team leader. The initiative aims to create a revenue-generating structure that continues after device sales.
Since its launch in 2015, Samsung TV Plus has provided immediate TV viewing services without the need for separate subscriptions or additional equipment. Earlier this year, the service surpassed 100 million global monthly active users for the first time in its 11-year history. Currently, it offers 4,300 channels and over 76,000 on-demand videos across 30 countries.
The existing TV Plus Group, which previously managed the FAST business, will now focus on expanding its licensing business for its operating system, Tizen, to external TV manufacturers in countries like China. Samsung has supplied Tizen to companies such as Tempo in Australia, Artmacha in Turkey, and HKC in China since 2021, with plans to increase supply tenfold this year. The strategy includes broadening its target from individual TV manufacturers to original design manufacturers (ODMs) to rapidly capture the TV OS ecosystem.
Both the newly established task force and the TV Plus Group will report directly to Lee, reflecting his commitment to shift the decision-making structure from hardware development to prioritizing software and platform services as the new core of the division.
In his inaugural speech, Lee called for bold innovation to overcome challenges in the TV business. He noted, "The competition has expanded to include big tech companies with overwhelming software capabilities and platform firms that capture customer time through content. We must redefine the essence of our business and prepare for a new 20 years of Samsung TV without fear of challenges."
Reactions among employees to the organizational restructuring have been mixed. While there is optimism that Lee, an expert in marketing platform services, will find new breakthroughs in a stagnant TV market, there is also tension regarding potential personnel changes driven by a focus on performance.
One Samsung employee shared anonymously in a workplace community, "Getting approval from the service business team is now more important than from the development team. The atmosphere has definitely shifted to prioritize platform revenue metrics over unnecessary reporting formats."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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