Samsung Electronics commemorates Its 50th Anniversary

The world's biggest chipmaker, Samsung Electronics, on Friday commemorated its 50th anniversary at Samsung Digital City, its headquarters in Suwon.
Kim Hyesung reports.
90 billion U.S .dollars in exports last year, number six in global brand value, number one in goods including TVs and smartphones.
Samsung Electronics, South Korea's tech giant marked its 50th anniversary on Friday.
At the ceremony held at Samsung Digital City attended by hundreds of employees and the heads of company divisions, Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, the company's de facto leader, through a video message, thanked Samsung employees for their dedication... and emphasized the company's commitment to build on its legacy and make it to a hundred.
He added that Samsung will contribute to global society through innovative technologies, pointing to innovation, change and social contribution as three key goals heading forward.
Founded in 1969, the company started with just 36 employees producing black and white TVs, but has since grown into a global powerhouse.
Innovation and challenge has been the driving force of Samsung Electronics, which entered the semiconductor business in 1983.
Chairman Lee Kun-hee in 1993 famously told employees to "Change everything, except for your wives and your children" to improve its electronics products.
Since then, Samsung Electronics started producing mobile phones.
Its TVs, refrigerators and semiconductors now top the global markets.
As of 2019, Samsung's exports increased from 100 million dollars in 1979 to 90 billion dollars last year, accounting for around 15 percent of Korea's total exports.
Sales hit 208 billion dollars last year.
Despite the firm's success, Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, the only son of Chairman Lee Kun-hee, faces numerous challenges including the on-going U.S.-China trade dispute, the need to find new growth engines and a retrial on corruption charges that landed him in prison in 2017.
In April, Vice Chairman Lee unveiled plans to become world's number one in non-memory chips by investing a total of 116 billion dollars by 2030.
Kim Hyesung, Arirang News.