Samsung is planning to retire the Galaxy S3 smartphone sooner than planned as well as reduce the monthly production numbers of the flagship S4.

According to Korean publication ET News, the South Korean electronics maker is going to reduce the parts inventory and manufacture of a number of smartphone models, and retire others to streamline operations.
The monthly production levels of the Galaxy S4 is expected to be reduced by 10 – 15 percent. The publication says that July’s Galaxy S4 order is for 6.5 million handsets, which is only half of the amount requested two months previously. In April and May, the tech giant procured parts for over 10 million handsets, but after the model’s official launch, production is now on the wane.
A recent JP Morgan report demonstrated fears over the Galaxy S4’s sluggish sales. In June, the financial services firm cut share-price estimates by 9.5 percent, and lowered the company’s 2013 earnings estimate by nine percent — which sent shares plummeting.

JP Morgan cited poor European consumer demand as the reason for lower-than-expected shipment rates, and as a result cut predictive annual S4 shipments by 20 – 30 percent. Originally, the South Korean firm was expected to sell 80 million Galaxy S4 units this year, but estimates are now closer to 60 million. In response to the report, CEO Jongkyun Shin denied there was a problem with current sales figures.
In addition to cutting the S4’s production levels, the S3 is reportedly due to retire earlier than expected — joining a number of models that will be cut away due to poor sales performance. Samsung will not be able to raise marketshare rates and compete against rival Apple using only the flagship Galaxy S4 smartphone, and so rumors suggest the firm will be launching a new range of models from the Galaxy Note III to Galaxy S4 Mini and to Galaxy S4 Zoom.
According to Gartner, Samsung’s smartphone marketshare grew 13 percent in Q1 2013. The electronics maker’s global smartphone marketshare reached 30.8 percent, whereas rival Apple is estimated to have secured 18.2 percent of worldwide sales.