It’s official: LG Electronics is exiting the smartphone business

LG has officially pulled out of the smartphone business. There have been multiple reports in the last two weeks hinting at LG bidding adieu to the smartphone space once and for all, and that has indeed turned out to be the case.

In a public statement (via Yonhap News Agency), LG confirmed the closure of its mobile division. The company said in a regulatory filing that its mobile communications unit will no longer produce and sell smartphones, citing the division’s long slump and losing competitive edge.

Earlier reports cited Google, Facebook, Volkwagen, and Vietnam’s Bin Group to be among the potential buyer of LG’s smartphone division. However, talks never reached a conclusive point, leaving the company no choice but to withdraw from the market completely. The first reports of LG’s possible departure from the smartphone space surfaced in January. At the time, the company said it was “reviewing the direction of its mobile business with all possibilities open.”

Since Q2 2015, LG’s mobile division has been continuously reporting losses. In 2020, the mobile division registered a loss of $750.60 million.

It’s unclear what will happen to the company’s first rollable phone, which has been in the works for a long time. Previously an LG spokesperson had said that the company would be launching the phone later this year.

LG may not have enjoyed a grand financial success in the smartphone space, but its contribution to the smartphone industry will certainly be not forgotten. LG’s Android journey began in 2009 with the LG GW620, running Android 1.5 Cupcake out-of-the-box, and is seemingly ending with the LG Wing, which was one of the most innovative smartphones of 2020. If there’s one thing that stood out about LG as a company, it’s that they were never afraid to try something different and bold and kept on experimenting with new concepts and form factors.

LG was the first OEM to introduce an ultra-wide-angle camera on a mobile phone (LG G5) and one of the few OEMs that catered to audio enthusiasts with features like Quad DAC and powerful stereo speakers. During its journey, LG also teamed up with Google to produce some of the most iconic smartphones of our time, such as the Nexus 4, Nexus 5, and Nexus 5X. LG also made Google’s Pixel 2XL.

This is a developing story. Check back for more information.

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