Given the ongoing legal battle between Apple and Samsung, it wouldn’t surprise anyone if Apple started reducing its dependency on Samsung components. The S. Korean company makes a number of parts that go into products like the iPhone and iPad.
Well according to a new report, that’s exactly what is happening. Apple has been seen significantly reducing its next-gen iPhone part orders from Samsung. Oddly enough, however, it’s said that this move has nothing to do with the patent disputes…
Reuters is reporting that Apple has started reducing orders from Samsung for internal iPhone 5 parts in an effort to diversify its supply chain. Its source denies that the move was prompted by a souring relationship between the two companies.
Samsung makes a wide range of components for Apple’s products, including DRAM and NAND memory chips, and display panels. But for the iPhone 5, Apple has reportedly dropped Samsung’s name from the supplier list for these parts and has tapped LG Display, Toshiba Corp., Elpida Memory and SK Hynix to pick up the slack.
Interestingly, DigiTimes predicted this back in May, which caused Samsung to lose more than $10 billion in market value. Samsung makes a lot of money selling parts to Apple, and the thought of losing that obviously makes investors very nervous.
It’s possible that the report is right, though, that this doesn’t have anything to do with the beef between the two tech giants. This could just be Apple widening its supply chain to increase iPhone 5 production, or to help it avoid hiccups in part supplies.
That being said, we have to admit that this sounds a little like what Apple is doing to Google, forcing it out of iOS over its issues with Android. First Google Maps, and now YouTube. It’ll be interesting to see how this thing with Samsung plays out.
Could Apple survive without Samsung? Or, more importantly, could Samsung survive without Apple?