Dimmed prospects forces Samsung to shut down U.S. CPU research division

Dimmed prospects forces Samsung to shut down U.S. CPU research division

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said on Tuesday that it will be shutting down a CPU division in one of its U.S.-based facilities. The move was made after analysts forecasted dimmed prospects for the tech giant’s Exynos mobile chips.

The Exynos-branded processors, which are found in Samsung’s flagship Galaxy series of smartphones, have been struggling to find external customers.

“(Exynos) chips are not really used anywhere else and continue to lose ground in the mobile processor market, raising concerns about the company’s competitiveness,” said Park Sung-soon, analyst at Cape Investment & Securities.

The decision has led to speculation that Samsung would employ designs from its ARM or semi-custom designs. However, Park added that Samsung is not likely to give up the Exynos business entirely.