Do You Know Why Samsung is Known as Galaxy in Japan?

Since Samsung is a global pioneer in the creation of cutting-edge semiconductors, Japanese manufacturers have no solid reason to stop working with their devoted customer. Nevertheless, given ongoing political tensions and Samsung's reliance on Japan, questions persist over the longevity of the so-called Japan-South Korea semiconductor coalition.

Samsung does not brand its phones in Japan due to anti-Korean prejudice and a preference for items created in Japan. Without the Samsung branding, the S22, S22 Plus, and S22 Ultra are offered as "Galaxy" phones. Despite its widespread popularity, most consumers are unaware that their phone is a Samsung. Additionally, it totally renamed all of its retail sites across the nation, changing the "Samsung Store" to the "Galaxy Shop."

When Samsung first asserted its dominance over the global television market in 2006, they barely made a dent in the Japanese market. They eventually withdrew from the Japanese market after failing to gain enough momentum there in order to focus on other regions and keep their innovative brand reputation there.

With regard to mobile devices, history appears to be repeating itself since sales of Samsung-branded gadgets haven't exactly taken off. Currently, Apple comfortably leads the mobile device industry with a share of more than 30%, while native Japanese companies like Sony and Sharp take the lion's share of the remaining market share. Samsung's share stays around 4%.

Samsung wants to overcome this by branding their products under the Japanese telecoms, giving the Japanese the sense of quality assurance, they have come to expect. Japanese people take pride in and have an affinity for local goods that meet their high standards of quality (it's no wonder Apple could establish itself in the Japanese markets). By associating their products with the regional Japanese telecom operators, Samsung has made a wise course correction. The Samsung team even created a Facebook profile for the Galaxy brand (called "Galaxy Mobile Japan") without mentioning the Samsung name.

Even though the choice to brand everything "Galaxy" in Japan may come as a surprise, keep in mind that Samsung doesn't sell any other popular consumer goods in the Land of the Rising Sun. For all intents and purposes, it only offers Galaxy products—no laptops, printers, televisions, refrigerators, etc.