Samsung Halts Public Disclosures of Mobile Phone Sales Numbers

Even as its smartphone sales explode and appear set to cruise past Apple during the current quarter to take the top spot in the market, Samsung has instituted "a new information policy" that will see the company cease public reporting of its quarterly phone sales numbers, according to The Wall Street Journal.


While industry analysts will still be able to make some reasonable estimates of Samsung's phone shipments going forward, the new tight-lipped policy will make performance comparisons between market leaders more difficult.

"As competition intensifies, there are increased risks that the information we provide may adversely affect our own businesses," Robert Yi, Samsung's chief of investor relations, said on the call. He declined a request for further explanation.

The report notes that Samsung may have implemented the new policy at least in part due to its legal dispute with Apple, fearing that concrete comparisons between its shipments and Apple's could harm its case. Apple has accused Samsung of copying Apple's designs with its own Android-based products, which have seen tremendous success over the past several years.