LG Electronics

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LG Electronics
Type Public
Founded 1958
Headquarters Flag of South Korea Seoul, South Korea
Key people Yong Nam, Vice Chairman & CEO
Industry Mobile Communication, Digital Display, Digital Appliance and Digital Media
Revenue $68.8 billion USD
Employees 82,772 (29,948 in Korea/ 52,824 overseas) - as of 2006
Parent LG Group
Website LG Electronics Worldwide
LG Electronics
Hangul 엘지전자
Hanja LG電子

LG Electronics (KRXS: 066570, LSE: LGLD) is a South Korean multinational corporation. It is South Korea's second largest electronics maker and the world's third largest appliance maker.[1]

With headquarters in the LG Twin Towers on Yeouido, Seoul, LG Electronics is the flagship company of LG Group, one of the largest chaebols.

The company has 75 subsidiaries worldwide that design and manufacture televisions, home appliances, and telecommunications devices. LG Electronics owns Zenith Electronics and controls LG Displays, a joint venture with Philips Electronics.[2]

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[edit] Summary

By 2005, LG was a Top 100 global brand and in 2006, LG recorded a brand growth of 14%. Now the world's largest plasma panel manufacturer, its affiliate, LG Display, is one of the largest manufacturer of liquid crystal displays. Also in 2006, the company's mobile phone division, LG Mobile, marketed the LG ChocolateTM phone, changing the company's image of the maker of thick 3G phones. It now focuses on the design and marketing of phones such as the LG Shine and LG Prada (KE850). As a result, the company was picked as "The Design Team of the Year" by the Red Dot Design Award in 2006~2007 and is often called the "New Apple" or "New Sony" in the industry and online communities. They also sponsor English Premier League club, Fulham FC.

Billboards at Dundas Square in Toronto, Canada, featuring an LG advertisement.
Billboards at Dundas Square in Toronto, Canada, featuring an LG advertisement.

In 2006, its net income was $226 million, on total revenues of $24.7 billion.[3]

[edit] Company history

The company was originally established in 1958 as GoldStar, producing radios, TVs, refrigerators,washing machines, and air conditioners.[4]

The LG Group was a merger of two Korean companies, Lucky and GoldStar, from which the abbreviation of LG was derived. The current "Life's Good" slogan is a backronym. Before the corporate name change to LG, household products were sold under the brand name of Lucky, while electronic products were sold under the brand name of GoldStar (Hangul:금성). The GoldStar brand is still perceived as a discount brand. ' In 1994 Goldstar gained sponsorship from The 3DO Company to make the first 3DO Interactive multiplayer. It was very pricey, but is examined to be the best out of all of the 3DO Systems.

In 1995, GoldStar was renamed LG Electronics, and acquired Zenith Electronics of the United States.



[edit] Sponsorship

LG Electronics sponsored the English football club Leicester City and Weyside Rovers (Guildford) from 2000 until 2002. LG Electronics currently sponsors the English football club Fulham F.C, the Brazilian football club São Paulo F.C., AEK from Greece, the International Cricket Council, Australian Football League club the Fremantle Football Club and National Rugby League club Cronulla Sharks.

[edit] Business divisions

Mobile communications

Currently number five, LG Electronics is expected to become the fourth largest handset maker in 2008.[5] LG Electronics USA has a variety of handsets on their website at Mobile Phones - LG Electronics USA.

Digital appliance

The home appliance division makes products like refrigerators, air conditioners and washing machines. Its 2007 sales totaled KRW 11.8 trillion, accounting for 29% of the company's total revenue. The division's profit was KRW 717.1 billion. About 35% of the company's home appliance revenue comes from the North American market.[6]

Digital display

Plasma TVs, LCD TVs, Micro Display Panel TVs, Monitors, PDP Modules, OLED Panels, USB Memory, Flat Panel Computer Monitors

Digital media

Home Theater Systems, DVD Recorders, Super Multi DVD Rewriters, CD±RW, Notebook PCs, Desktop PCs, PDAs, PDA Phones, MP3 Players, New Karaoke Systems, Car Infotainment

[edit] Company brands

[edit] See also

[edit] External links