Seoul: South Korean tech giant LG Electronics will begin selling Apple products like iPhones at its South Korean stores, the media reported on Wednesday.
The company is expected to start selling iPhones at some of its stores in August. It is also expected to sell other products made by Apple, such as the Apple Watch, among other gadgets, reports ZDNet, citing a company spokesperson.
“LG was initially met with resistance from local phone distributors over the plan, which considered it to be a violation of an agreement that prevented anti-competitive behaviour from LG and Samsung,” the report said.
LG recently held a special promotion for iPhones, iPads and other Apple products on Lifecare, its online shopping mall for group employees.
This was reportedly the first time that the group offered mobile devices from another smartphone manufacturer for its employee purchase programme, reported Yonhap news agency.
LG currently has some 400 stores in the country. These stores had sold LG smartphones until the company announced it would exit from the smartphone business in April, this year.
Earlier, the South Korean company said in a regulatory filing that its mobile communications (MC) unit will no longer produce and sell handsets after July 31, citing a slump in business and fierce competition in the industry as the reasons behind the decision.
The announcement came two months after the company said its MC division is open to “all possibilities” for its future operations.