Report: Samsung Phones Became More Expensive In Q2 2017

Samsung Electronics-made smartphones became more expensive over the second quarter of the year, data analyzed by Strategy Analytics suggests, with the firm concluding that handsets sold by the South Korean original equipment manufacturer (OEM) reached the highest average selling price (ASP) in the last three years over the course of Q2 2017. The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus are understood to be the main reason for this upward trend, with analysts pointing out how Samsung recorded massive shipments of its two flagships in the three-month period ending June 30, thus driving up the ASP of its mobile products. The average price of the Seoul-based tech giant’s smartphones in the second quarter of the year amounted to $235 and was somewhat higher than the $227 ASP recorded by the company last year.

The discontinuation of the Galaxy Note 7 that Samsung opted for last fall is said to have artificially brought down the ASP of its devices as millions of consumers were left without their premium phablet and either purchased a less expensive device from the company or decided against buying another Samsung-made product for the time being. Over the last few years, the same metric was brought down by Samsung’s general business strategy that saw the company put a larger focus at expanding its mobile portfolio and releasing a higher number of entry-level and mid-range phones than it did before. The effort helped improve Samsung’s sales in a number of markets like India but consequently reduced its product ASP. The current average hasn’t been surpassed by the company since 2013 when the ASP of its mobile offerings amounted to $289, Strategy Analytics noted.

According to latest estimates, Samsung sold approximately 19.2 million units of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus over the second quarter of the year, with the commercial performance of its most expensive lineup amounting for more than 20 percent of its total smartphone sales during the same period. The 93 million smartphone models that Samsung is thought to have sold in Q2 2017 represents more than one fifth of the global smartphone market, Strategy Analytics found. The ASP of Samsung’s products may continue rising in the coming months as the highly anticipated Galaxy Note 8 is expected to be one of the company’s most successful and most expensive smartphones ever.