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Samsung is selling so many smartphones that its chip division can’t keep up

Published Apr 12th, 2013 10:55AM EDT
Samsung Smartphone Sales

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In 2012, one of Samsung’s (005930) biggest problems was ridding itself of the “copycat” image Apple branded it with. The company appears to have succeeded. In 2013, Samsung has a new problem — but it’s a much better problem to have. According to a new report from Digitimes, Samsung is selling so many smartphones that its chip division simply can’t build enough memory modules to keep up with demand. As a result, the site’s unnamed sources say Samsung has had to turn to outside companies for help, and has been buying mobile DRAM chips from Elpida Memory and some NAND flash and eMMC modules from Toshiba. The report notes that Samsung’s memory module business is the largest in the world, so the shortages could have far reaching implications.

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.