Since the spring of 2009 there have been reports surfacing that the management of Samsung Group had been discussing the company's strategy for their professional security businesses. Two subsidiaries were covering the market for video surveillance in Europe with their products at the same time: Samsung Techwin, whose products are supplied and supported by Samsung Techwin Europe Ltd across the territory and Samsung Electronics, whose products are supplied and supported directly from Korea. The result of the discussion has been presented and effective January 1^st 2010 the Security business of Samsung Electronics will transfer to Samsung Techwin in Korea. In Europe this means that Samsung Techwin Europe Ltd will take responsibility for the supply and support for both existing Samsung Techwin and Samsung Electronics product ranges and all new Samsung security products into the future. GIT SECURITY had the opportunity to ask James Smith, European Marketing Manager Samsung Techwin Europe Ltd, about what this means for the industry.

GIT SECURITY: Both Samsung subsidiaries in the video surveillance market have shown significant growth last year despite the economic situation. Can you give us an overview about the market situation for Samsung before the merger?

J. Smith: Our combined success during 2009 has been phenomenal despite the economic downturn. I believe this is down to three reasons; firstly the support of our distribution channels and clients has been excellent, secondly our new products have been very well received in the market place, a number of which have topped independent benchmark results, and thirdly our team have worked tirelessly to ensure that the benefits of using Samsung have been understood and the product has been demonstrated at every single opportunity. The value that we are able to offer our clients as Samsung is by far and a long way better than what our competitors can offer and this has resulted in our market share increasing as a group quite significantly throughout 2009. Being a combined force going forward we are very confident that this will lead to even greater results throughout 2010.

How will the business be organized in the new constellation regarding R&D, product development and marketing & sales?

J. Smith: Our R&D and product development teams have come together in Korea, which means that future products will benefit greatly from the sharing of ideas, knowledge and technology. In addition to the Samsung Techwin products it already services, Samsung Techwin Europe Ltd now has responsibility for the supply and support of all product lines from Samsung Electronics. Sales, marketing, product management and training for all products will be handled by our growing number of local offices across Europe,  ensuring all our clients receive the highest levels of pre and post sale support.

Samsung Techwin and Samsung Electronics always had a pipeline full of new products. What can we expect in 2010 and under what label will the new products appear?

J. Smith: One of the things that we were told regularly was that there was confusion in the marketplace about Samsung having two "brands" (Electronics and Techwin). Everybody will be pleased to know that new products introduced over the coming months as a direct result of the two company's combining will simply be known as "Samsung" products. What this allows us to do is to pick the best technology to use for the specific need and gives us an excellent opportunity to widen our product ranges. As an example, in the pipeline we have a host of ONVIF compatible network products, H.264 digital video recorders, new camera and dome products and we are continuing to bolster our product offering into areas that allow us to provide complete solutions, such as Access Control.

Samsung Techwin and Samsung Electronics both have some multinational distributors in Europe and some exclusive distribution contracts in the different countries of Europe. How will the distribution be organised in 2010 and for the future?

J. Smith: All existing distribution agreements remain in place throughout 2010. This means that nothing changes in terms of supply or access to existing Samsung Electronics and Samsung Techwin product ranges. As new products get introduced, either as completely new products or to supersede existing products as part of the usual product lifecycle, they will be available to all Samsung distributors whether they have historically purchased Electronics or Techwin products. This approach will ensure that our clients get the best possible service and can continue to deal with their preferred distributors.