Despite acquiring Harman, the Samsung Galaxy S8 won’t feature their speakers
Despite the $8 billion all-cash deal to acquire Harman, a maker of automotive audio equipment, the Samsung Galaxy S8 won’t feature the Harman Kardon high-end audio technology that is now a part of Samsung’s portfolio. That doesn’t mean the company isn’t looking to put its acquisition to good use, however, as Park Jong-hwan who serves as the vice president and head of Samsung’s car parts division says the company could use Harman audio in its Galaxy S phones as soon as 2018.
“It will take time for the acquisition process to be completed, including the planned shareholders’ vote. After that, we could ramp up efforts for business synergies. If we are to adopt Harman’s high-end audio technology for the Galaxy S series phone, the first model could come in 2018.”
Samsung’s deal with Harman has led some to speculate that the Korean giant could be looking to build cars of its own, but Samsung executives have denied those claims. They state that the company is more interested in being a leading provider of connected car solutions in today’s Internet of Things connected world. Samsung reiterated that Harman will not become one of the tech giant’s supply chain affiliates, but rather it will remain independent despite the acquisition.