People visit Samsung Electronics' booth during CES 2026 in Las Vegas, Jan. 4. Courtesy of Samsung Electronics
Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are scrambling to revive their slowing home appliance businesses, shifting strategies to regain ground lost to Chinese rivals.
Samsung Electronics said Monday it has appointed its global chief marketing officer, Lee Won-jin, as the new head of the company's Visual Display (VD) business, which handles TV and other display-related operations.
Lee will replace Yong Seok-woo, who has led the business since November 2023. Yong will become an adviser to Roh Tae-moon, head of Samsung’s Device Experience division, which includes VD and mobile device businesses.
Lee Won-jin, Samsung Electronics' new head of Visual Display business / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics
Lee is a marketing and software service specialist who joined Samsung in 2013 from Google. Before serving as global chief marketing officer, he was credited with successfully establishing Samsung TV Plus, a free ad-supported streaming service, which diversified the company’s device-focused business into a platform-based model.
“Drawing on his track record of business success and market insight, he is expected to spearhead business turnarounds and identify new growth areas, thereby further strengthening the competitiveness of the visual display business," the company said in a press release.
The appointment was unusual, as the company typically carries out management reshuffles around December, reflecting urgency to address risks of falling behind amid intensifying competition from Chinese rivals in the TV market.
Samsung Electronics’ TV and other home appliance business reported disappointing earnings in recent months.
The VD and home appliance businesses posted 100 billion won ($67.9 million) and 600 billion won of operating loss in the third and fourth quarter of last year, respectively. It returned to a 200 billion won operating profit in the first quarter of this year, but this does not mark a clear rebound, as the businesses have shown similar swings in recent years.
Source: Korea Times News
