LG unveils Ally to revive smartphone sales

SEOUL, S.KOREA: LG Electronics Inc released on Thursday its first Android-based smartphone in the United States with Verizon Wireless, as the South Korean firm seeks to revive its struggling handset business.

The world's No.3 handset maker after Finland's Nokia and home rival Samsung Electronics has suffered from razor-thin handset margins since late last year due to a lack of hit models and a slow response to the fast-growing smartphone market.

The company said while reporting first-quarter earnings last month that turning around its handset business was its top priority and warned that profit recovery in the division would be slow, sending its shares down 13 per cent since.

"The launch will mark our aggressive foray into the smartphone market starting from the United States, which accounts for half of global smartphone demand...we'll aggressively market our products and introduce full smartphone line-ups throughout this year," LG said in a statement.

The launch of the Ally also comes as Google displaced iPhone maker Apple in the first quarter to become the second most popular provider of smartphone software in the U.S. market.

But the Ally will have to compete with other popular Android-based models such as HTC's Incredible, also sold through Verizon.