Samsung introduces new MP3 players

Samsung said on Thursday it would use its handset and chip making dominance to win market share in the MP3 music player business and unveiled six new models aimed at helping it triple sales this year.

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Asia's most valuable technology company and the world's third-largest mobile phone maker, already has a eight models in the fast growing and profitable MP3 market.

The six new players from Samsung, also the world's biggest memory chip maker, should be available in the first half of the year.

They range from a 256 megabyte flash memory type to a 30 gigabyte hard disk drive model capable of holding about 7,500 songs.

Samsung and big Asian brands Sony Corp. and Creative Technology Ltd., as well as PC heavyweights Dell Inc. and Gateway Inc., have their sights set on Apple's juicy market position.

Its popular iPod music player and iTunes music store have a 70 percent share of the global digital music player and music download markets. In the U.S., Apple's market share is 80 percent.

"We aim to sell more than 5 million MP3 players this year versus 1.7 million sold last year and will seek various strategic alliances with content providers such as Microsoft to boost sales," said Samsung Electronics vice president Kim Suh-kyum at a press conference.

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Samsung's new pocket-sized models have color screens and radio tuners. Some have features allowing users to watch music videos or take digital photographs.

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Sales of MP3 players are set to grow 57 percent this year after more than doubling in 2004, according to market research group iSuppli, which predicts sales will more than double by 2009.

Samsung said it was looking to grab a 10 percent share in the United States this year, Kim said. He wouldn't say how much it accounted for in 2004.

Shares in Samsung closed down 1.4 percent at 496,000 won on Thursday, versus a 1.3 percent drop in the broader market.