Jo Seong-jin, vice chairman and CEO of LG Electronics, has ordered a revision of the company’s upcoming premium phone, temporarily called the “G7,” further delaying its launch to April.



According to a company official who asked for anonymity, the G7 smartphone team of the company’s mobile communications business was told to halt recent work related to development of the newest phone, and to review the new product from scratch.



“Right after the vice chairman made the announcement at the Consumer Electronics Show last week, a direct order was sent down to the working-level officials to start over,” the official told The Korea Herald.



“A new decision on a possible launch date will be released around the Lunar New Year holiday next month,” he said. The smartphone was initially expected to be unveiled at the end of February and launched in March.



At the CES in Las Vegas on Thursday, Jo hinted at a major change in the company’s money-losing smartphone unit, saying “We will unveil new smartphones when it is needed. But we will not launch it just because other rivals do,” during a press conference.



The company has been excelling in premium home appliances but it is struggling with smartphones.



Instead of LG’s G series phone, techies will be able to see Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy S9 at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February, where LG has unveiled its first-half flagship device in past years.



Jo had also said he is considering retaining existing models longer, or changing the smartphone’s brand name.



LG Electronics Vice Chairman & CEO Jo Seong-jin (LG Electronics)