Visitors to this year's IFA tradeshow take a look at Samsung Electronics' super ultra-high definition television at its booth in Berlin, Germany, in this file photo. / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics



By Lee Min-hyung

Samsung Electronics will gain huge traction with its high-end 4K televisions and smartphones this upcoming Black Friday, the biggest shopping holiday in the United States, a London-based market research firm said Tuesday.

The prediction comes as shipments of 4K TVs more than doubled in the July-September period, up more than 3.3 million units from a quarter ago, backed by the strong holiday season push coming this Friday, according to IHS Technology senior manager Paul Gagnon.

"IHS is forecasting that in the fourth quarter, 4K TV average prices in North America will drop by more than 20 percent, compared to a year ago," he said. This is because Black Friday promotions were finalized before a sharp increase in LCD TV display prices in recent months, according to him.

"As prices continue to fall, the popularity of larger screen sizes continues to rise," he said. "The average TV size will grow to nearly 45 inches in the fourth quarter, with 55-inch 4K sales expected to be very strong and promotional prices well below $600 (705,000 won) for the holidays."

The 4K, or ultra-high-definition (UHD), is on course to become the next mainstream TV standard, delivering four times the resolution of traditional full HD TVs.

Samsung Electronics leads the 4K TV market in the U.S. According to online statistics portal Statista, Samsung held a market share of 28 percent there last year, beating 17 percent of LG Electronics by a large margin.

IHS also said the upcoming shopping season bodes well for Samsung Electronics' handset business to rebound from the latest setback over the recall of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone.

"Still a market leader, Samsung is shifting its efforts to push its existing portfolio in place of the Note 7," said IHS senior analyst Gerrit Schneeman. "The Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge devices had successful launches earlier in 2016, and they appear to be refocusing their marketing and production efforts on these devices."

But he went on to point out that Apple may enjoy benefits from the latest Note 7 debacle in the fourth quarter.

"Apple's iPhone shipments declined from 48 million in the third quarter last year to 45.5 million in the most recent quarter," he said. "However, Apple is expected to enjoy strong demand in the fourth quarter, partly making up for Samsung's missteps."

Following the Note 7 production termination last month, its biggest large-screen counterparts ― including the iPhone 7 Plus, the Google Pixel XL and LG's V20 ― are now filling the void of the ill-fated handset.

But chances are Samsung may offset this to some extent by pushing for aggressive marketing tactics for the S7 and S7 Edge, according to the analyst.

"Importantly, Samsung has a history of supporting its devices with incentives for buyers," he said. "This includes, for example, a Gear VR headset in the purchase package. Such packages are likely to be the focus for the company during the holiday season to drive sales of the Galaxy S7 devices."