Europe : LG Electronics (LGE), propelled by its aggressive brand marketing and large-scale exports of mobile phones, has emerged as a major player in the U.S. mobile phone market. The company received the highest approval ratings for customer satisfaction based on latest survey results released on October 26 by a global marketing research firm.

LGE rose to the top spot in customer satisfaction in the 2003 U.S. wireless phone survey conducted by J. D. Power and Associates, the U.S. most-reliable and prestigious market research agency. The company edged out global leading players including Nokia and Motorola.

The annual survey evaluated customer satisfaction in five categories of wireless phones, namely, physical design, features, operation, battery function and durability. For this year, the survey targeted 24,000 customers across the U.S., up from last year''s 5,000 target. LGE ranked in the upper class in the five categories, obtaining a total of 121 points. LGE beat Samsung, which gained 117 points, and Sanyo, 116 points.

In particular, the survey was conducted to include the whole the U.S. CDMA
and GSM mobile phones, and LGE products received the highest customer satisfaction ratings in design and features, thus proving that LGE is the true leader in design and various convenient features in mobile phones - the categories that constitute the company''s traditional strength.

Since the first half of 2003, LGE has been aggressively conducting various sports marketing campaigns across the U.S., as well as region-specific hub marketing campaigns in line with efforts to boost LGE brand recognition. In July, the company supplied camera-equipped cdma2000-1x color mobile phones (model: VX6000) to Verizon. Subsequently, LGE created a sensation and made its presence felt, successfully creating its high-end brand image in the upscale U.S. handset market.

LGE also posted the highest market share in the U.S. CDMA phone market in the first half of this year, according to U.S. market research firm Strategy Analytics, having supplied 4.86 million units and capturing a 25% market share. With the demand for large operators expected to rise in the second half of 2003, LGE is expected to further stabilize its position as a major mobile phone player in the U.S.

Mr. James Kim, LGE Telecommunication Equipment & Handset Company, said, "LGE''s rise to the top spot in customer satisfaction is the first official proof of our superior technologies and business capability in mobile phones since our LG brand set foot on the U.S. soil in 1999." He added, "This occasion gave us the momentum to not only boost U.S. customers'' confidence in the LGE mobile phone brand, but also improve our relations with mobile operators."

Until the end of 2003, LGE is set to reinforce its line-up of CDMA camera phones to consolidate its premium brand image, advance successfully to the U.S. GSM mobile phone market, and maintain a leading position in the U.S. mobile phone market.