Samsung tops French mobile phone market

SEOUL, Sept. 4 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday that it has retained the top position in the French mobile phone market, further widening a gap with its rival Nokia Corp.

Samsung phones grabbed the record-high market share of 43.7 percent in France
during the week from Aug. 24-30, the company said, quoting a report by global
consumer research firm GFK.
In July, Samsung clinched the top spot in the French market with 36.1 percent,
followed by Finland's Nokia with a 21.7 percent share.
The market-share gap between the two mobile phone makers widened to 14.4
percentage points in July, from 9.5 percentage points in May.
Samsung Electronics has held top position in the French market since 2005,
company officials said.
Sales of Samsung's "Star" phones topped 5 million units in the four months after
the release and the figure is expected to exceed 10 million by November, they
said.
The company attributed its growth in France to aggressive localization, hiring
French nationals who filled in 95 percent of the positions at its subsidiary in
France.
ygkim@yna.co.kr
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